Elon Musk and his political action committee are trying to bring a civil suit — which alleges Musk’s voter registration “lottery” system is illegal — in federal court rather than the state court system. Pennsylvania.

Musk’s legal team submitted the file late Wednesday evening. He was scheduled to appear in Philadelphia County Court Thursday morning, after District Attorney Larry Krasner filed a lawsuit against the billionaire and his America PAC earlier this week. However, federal law requires state courts to delay further action if a defendant files a request to move proceedings from state to federal courts.

Musk says the case is not about “state law harm and consumer protection claims” but rather claims of election “interference.”

“While (Krasner’s complaint) purports to raise only state law claims relating to public nuisance and consumer protection, DA Krasner’s claims, as the complaint makes clear, rely primarily on the The allegation that the defendants are somehow illegally interfering with a federal election. “, Musk’s legal request maintainssuggesting that such questions of legality are a matter for a federal framework and not a state court.

It’s unclear how quickly a federal court will respond to Musk’s case, or whether any action in the case will take place before Election Day. Musk announced a new winner of its unregulated lottery system Thursday morning.

Despite Musk’s legal objections to Krasner’s lawsuit, the prosecutor’s complaint is pretty straightforward that Musk’s lottery appears to be illegal.

Pennsylvania law requires that every lottery administered in the state be regulated by state officials. Musk’s lottery – which awards $1 million each day to a registered voter in a swing state, including Pennsylvania, who signed a petition in support of the First and Second Amendments to the Constitution – is not regulated in any way .

“The America PAC and Musk are urging citizens of Philadelphia – and other members of the Commonwealth (and other swing states in upcoming elections) – to give up their personally identifiable information and make a political commitment in exchange a chance to win $1 million. » Krasner’s lawsuit said. “It’s a lottery. And it is undoubtedly an illegal lottery. Under unambiguous Pennsylvania law, all Pennsylvania lotteries must be regulated by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

The lawsuit also notes that state law defines illegal lotteries as public “nuisances” and that unregulated projects like Musk’s violate these laws.

The Department of Justice (DOJ) has admitted that Musk’s lottery system is likely in violation of federal lawbecause U.S. laws prohibit anyone from paying or offering to pay “either to register to vote or to vote,” with severe penalties for individuals or entities that violate these requirements. The DOJ, however, refused to stop Musk from continuing his lottery.

Election law experts also said Musk’s plan was likely illegal.

“When you start limiting prizes or giveaways to only registered voters or only people who have voted, that’s when the corruption problems arise,” said Derek Muller, professor at Notre Dame Law School.