Philadelphia
CNN
—
A Pennsylvania judge ruled Monday that Elon Musk’s daily $1 million giveaway to voters can continue, in a victory for the tech billionaire and Donald Trump ally.
Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas Judge Angelo Foglietta rejected arguments from the city’s district attorney, Larry Krasner, who argued that the sweepstakes was an illegal lottery violating state law and must be halted immediately.
The ruling came shortly after an all-day hearing in a packed courtroom in downtown Philadelphia. The hearing was heated at times, with Krasner’s team calling Musk’s political team “shysters” who are running a “scam” and “grift” – and Musk’s team accusing the district attorney of pursuing a “dreadful violation of constitutional rights.”
Krasner, a progressive Democrat, filed the lawsuit one week ago. The daily giveaways from Musk’s pro-Trump super PAC continued as the issue worked its way through the courts – despite Krasner’s lawsuit and a Justice Department warning that the cash prizes might also violate federal election laws.
Musk and his lawyers have called Krasner’s lawsuit a “publicity stunt” and accused him of bringing the case because he disagrees with Musk’s advocacy in support of Trump.
In court Monday, Musk’s lawayers said the super PAC isn’t picking winners “by chance.”
“There is no prize to be won,” Musk lawyer Chris Gober said, and the winners “are not chosen by chance.”
Instead, Gober said the so-called “prize” is actually compensation for serving as a spokesperson for the super PAC – and the recipients of the $1 million “are selected based on their suitability to serve as spokesperson for America PAC.” They “earn” the million dollars as payment for their work.
In announcing the giveaway, Musk said: “We are going to be awarding $1 million randomly to people who have signed the petition,” referring to his petition in support of the Constitution.
This story has been updated with additional details.