$1M sweepstakes winners are not chosen by chance, Elon Musk PAC tells Pennsylvania judge

Sweepstakes can proceed, Pennsylvania judge says

ByPeter Charalambous ABCNews logo
Monday, November 4, 2024 9:55PM
$1M sweepstakes winners are not chosen by chance, Elon Musk PAC tells Philadelphia judge
$1M sweepstakes winners are not chosen by chance, Elon Musk PAC tells Philadelphia judgeA lawyer for Elon Musk's political action committee said winners are not chosen by chance but are instead chosen to be paid "spokespeople" for the group.

PHILADELPHIA -- A Philadelphia judge is allowing Elon Musk's America PAC to continue its million-dollar giveaway to registered swing state voters.

Common Pleas Court Judge Angelo Foglietta denied Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner's request for an injunction to stop the giveaway, which has handed out $17 million to voters across the swing states. According to defense attorneys, America PAC plans to announce their 18th and final prize winner on Tuesday in Michigan.

The decision followed a nearly six-hour hearing Monday, during which an attorney for Musk and America PAC revealed that the winners were preselected despite Musk saying publicly it was a "random" lottery.

A lawyer for Krasner called Musk's giveaway "one of the great scams of the last 50 years" by deceiving more than a million swing state voters to sign a petition in the hopes of winning a million dollars.

This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.

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