(LibertySociety.com) – The Biden-Harris administration is reportedly examining potential legal actions against Elon Musk due to his plan to incentivize voter turnout by offering cash prizes to registered voters. Musk’s initiative, linked to his America PAC, proposes daily drawings with $1 million rewards for participants who register in support of the First and Second Amendments. However, according to The New York Times, the Department of Justice (DOJ) has cautioned that this approach may breach federal laws that prohibit monetary incentives directly tied to voting activities.
The DOJ’s concerns about Musk’s initiative, which targets voters in battleground states, stem from its similarity to payments for voter registration—a prohibited activity under U.S. election law if it is seen as a form of bribery. The DOJ’s interest was sparked by requests from anti-Trump groups. Legal experts have noted this situation is novel, with John Fortier of the American Enterprise Institute describing it as “straddling the line” on legality, while Stanford’s Nate Persily explained that the determining factor would be if Musk’s program induces people to register specifically to receive money, potentially rendering it unlawful.
Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro has voiced concerns about Musk’s proposal, calling for law enforcement review, given the substantial cash flows into key election states. Musk, who has increasingly engaged in public discourse on politics, recently told a crowd in Pennsylvania that the stakes in the upcoming election motivated him to take an active role despite his general reluctance to engage in political matters.
Musk’s plan is a significant attempt to leverage alternative media and political engagement to influence voter turnout, and the situation has introduced unprecedented legal questions about financial incentives in political advocacy.
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