Voters who signed up for Elon Musk's "Million Dollar Lottery" event are suing the tesla CEO and his American Political Action Committee, claiming that participants were misled in the selection process of the winners.
After evading legal challenges in Pennsylvania for a day, Musk's lottery event faced new accusations in federal courts in Texas and Michigan on Tuesday.
Jacqueline McAferty from Arizona claims that if she had known that the winners were not randomly selected, and she did not have a chance to take home 1 million dollars, she would not have signed the petition of the American Political Action Committee or provided personal information. In fact, the winners were not randomly chosen but carefully selected to become advocates for this Political Action Committee supporting former U.S. President Trump.
According to her proposed class action lawsuit filed in Austin, Texas, Musk and the Political Action Committee "deceived" McAferty and others who sought political support on the billionaire's social media platform, X, encouraging people to sign a petition calling for freedom of speech and the right to bear arms, and the chance to "randomly" win 1 million dollars.
Before election day, the American Political Action Committee was donating 1 million dollars daily, but Musk's lawyer revealed in a court hearing in Philadelphia on Monday that the winners were not randomly selected. A financial officer of the committee testified that instead, the Political Action Committee selected registered voters from swing states as public spokespersons based on their personal stories and required them to sign employment contracts.
Previously, Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner filed a lawsuit against Musk and the Political Action Committee to stop them from selling "illegal lottery tickets," saying that these tickets enticed "Philadelphia citizens to give up their personal information, make political commitments in exchange for the chance to win 1 million dollars."
However, Pennsylvania Judge Angelo Foglietta rejected the prosecutor's request to stop the event on Monday.
In the Austin case, McAfee is seeking unspecified damages and requesting Musk and the Political Action Committee to destroy her information.
The Michigan case was brought by a voter named Robert Anthony Alvarez, who claimed to be a resident of the state, supporting Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris. Alvarez said he signed a petition in support of free speech and gun rights, and believed he had a chance to win $1 million because the promotion was advertised as a 'non-partisan giveaway'.
In the complaint, Alvarez stated: "A careful observation of the recipients of the $1 million prize reveals a clear pattern: the selection process is not only not random, but a targeted process that excludes any vocal supporters who are not Republicans or Donald Trump.
Musk's lawyers did not immediately respond to requests for comment.