Elon Musk has been placed on legal notice by the Department of Justice regarding his $1 million daily giveaway to registered voters in swing states, according to former U.S. Attorney Joyce Vance.
Legal experts have warned that Musk’s initiative may violate federal laws prohibiting vote-buying, potentially leading to criminal charges.
In a recent blog post, Vance said that the DOJ sent Musk a written notice stating that his payments “may violate federal law.” She explained that the law prohibiting vote-buying “does so in broad terms,” covering any payment made or offered to someone in connection with voting in a federal election.
“While some dismissed this as just ‘a sternly written letter,’ it’s more than that. The law that prohibits vote-buying ‘does so in broad terms,’ as DOJ’s election crimes manual, a Bible of sorts for federal prosecutors handling these matters, details,” said Vance.
Elon Musk awards Kristine Fishell with a $1 million check during a town hall at the Roxain Theater on October 20, 2024, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Musk is on notice from the DOJ for his multimillion giveaways to signatories of the pro-Trump America PAC petition.
Michael Swensen/Getty Images
Will the DOJ Prosecute Musk?
“The Justice Department has put Musk on notice that if he continues to make these payments through his America PAC, he is violating the law, which makes it difficult to muster a defense if he continues to make the payments,” she wrote.
She added that while most people would cease such activities when confronted by the DOJ, it remains to be seen how Musk will respond.
The billionaire’s initiative involves awarding $1 million daily to individuals who sign an online petition supporting the First and Second Amendments. The petition is targeting registered voters in pivotal swing states like Pennsylvania, Georgia, Nevada, Arizona, Michigan, Wisconsin and North Carolina.
Petition signatories also currently receive a $47 payment for each registered voter they refer with $100 payments for registered voters in Pennsylvania.
Musk’s initiative specifically targets swing states that are crucial in determining the election outcome. According to FiveThirtyEight, polls show a tight race in states like Wisconsin and Pennsylvania, heightening concerns that such giveaways could influence voter behavior.
Vance said that, should Musk face prosecution, this is unlikely to happen before the election “given the evidence DOJ would have to put together and the timing of getting it before a grand jury, leaving aside concerns about taking steps like this so close to an election, this news sends an important message too.”
Legal Experts on Musk’s America PAC Actions
Neama Rahmani, a former federal prosecutor and president of West Coast Trial Lawyers, commented on the legal implications of Musk’s actions.
“Musk is walking a very fine line. Federal law is clear. He can’t pay someone to vote or to register to vote. That is prohibited by 18 U.S.C. § 597 and 52 U.S.C. § 10307,” Rahmani said. “Signing a petition is free speech that is protected by the First Amendment. Paying someone to sign a petition isn’t necessarily illegal, unless the petition is just a pretext for bribing participants to vote or register to vote. The fact that the signers have to also be registered to vote to qualify is dubious, but not enough to be a clear violation under our existing laws.”
Similarly, David Driesen, a law professor at Syracuse University and author of The Specter of Dictatorship: Judicial Enabling of Presidential Power, expressed deep concerns: “Allies to autocrats try to help them tilt the electoral playing field. That’s how they destroy democracies. And that is what Musk is doing.”
“If people think votes have been bought because there’s evidence of that, the face of democracy starts crumbling. We’ve seen this a lot in Latin America. It’s what makes Latin American democracy so unstable and non-democratic – the allies of heads of state buy votes,” added Driesen.
“We’re going the way of a third-world country if we allow that to happen. That has to be met with a more forceful response,” he said.
DOJ’s Broader Efforts to Protect the Election
The DOJ’s notice to Musk comes amid increased efforts to safeguard the upcoming election’s integrity. In her blog post, Vance highlighted the department’s proactive measures, including the Election Threats Task Force’s recent actions.
The task force, which was established in 2021 to address threats of violence against election workers and ensure they can perform their duties without intimidation, announced developments on October 23 in four significant criminal cases involving threats to election officials.
“Threats to election workers are threats to our democratic process. No one should face violence or threats of violence simply for doing their job,” said Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco.
She added that the DOJ “will not tolerate those who use or threaten violence in an effort to undermine our democratic institutions. To carry out their essential work, election officials must be free from improper influence, physical threats, and others forms of intimidation.”
Newsweek contacted Elon Musk via email for comment.
