By Jack QueenReuters

Elon Musk presented Kristine Fishell with a check for $1 million during a town hall at the Roxain Theater on October 20 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
Photo: AFP/Getty Images/Michael Swensen

Elon Musk was ordered to attend a hearing on Friday (NZT) at a prosecutor’s trial to block the billionaire’s $1 million a day (NZ$1.68 million) donation to registered voters in swing states ahead of the November 5 US election.

The hearing before Judge Angelo Foglietta concerns Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner’s attempt to stop the giveaway less than a week before the hotly contested U.S. presidential election between former Republican President Donald Trump and Vice -Democratic President Kamala Harris.

Krasner, who championed progressive causes during his bid for district attorney, accuses Musk, Tesla CEO, Trump supporterand his political action committee America PAC, of ​​having developed an “illegal lottery scheme to influence voters.”

Musk promised to give $1 million a day to randomly selected people who signed a petition pledging to support free speech and gun rights. Signatories had to be registered voters in one of seven states that could decide the outcome of the Nov. 5 election: Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.

Musk distributed the first $1 million to an attendee at an Oct. 19 rally hosted by America PAC in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.

Musk at a Trump rally in Pennsylvania.
Photo: JIM WATSON / AFP

Krasner’s Oct. 28 lawsuit alleges the giveaway amounts to an illegal lottery not authorized by the state, which has sole authority to administer and regulate them. The suit also claims it violates consumer protection laws by “deploying misleading, vague, or misleading statements” about its rules.

“The conduct of an illegal lottery and violation of consumer protections constitutes a sufficient basis for an injunction to conclude that America PAC and Musk must be stopped immediately prior to the upcoming November 5 presidential election,” the suit states.

Lawyers for Musk and America PAC did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Some legal experts have said Musk’s gift could also violate federal laws against paying people to vote or register to vote. Others say it is unharmed because people only need to sign a petition to enter.

Krasner’s lawsuit was filed in Pennsylvania state court and does not allege that the gift violated federal law.

The U.S. Department of Justice warned America PAC that the giveaway could violate federal law, several media outlets reported last week, although federal prosecutors took no action publicly.

Musk, listed by Forbes as the world’s richest person, has so far donated nearly US$120 million (NZ$201 million) to the America PAC, according to federal reports, making the group a crucial element in Trump’s attempt to win back the White House.

The entrepreneur increasingly supports Republican causes and this year became a staunch supporter of Trump.

Trump, in turn, said that if elected, he appoint Musk to head government efficiency commission.

-Reuters