Wisconsin attorney general sues Elon Musk over payments to voters
MADISON, Wisc. – Wisconsin Attorney General Josh Kaul is suing Elon Musk over the Trump ally’s plans to award $1 million checks to two Wisconsin voters ahead of Tuesday’s pivotal state Supreme Court election.
In a since-deleted post on X, Musk said he would hold an event Sunday in Wisconsin and hand out $1 million checks to voters “in appreciation for you taking the time to vote.”
But after election experts and Democrats raised questions about whether the offer violated the state’s election bribery laws, Musk deleted the post and said he would instead be handing over the checks to two people who would serve as spokespeople for his “Petition In Opposition To Activist Judges.” The new post also no longer said attendance would be limited “to those who have voted in the Supreme Court election,” as the original post had stated.
“To clarify a previous post, entrance is limited to those who have signed the petition in opposition to activist judges,” Musk wrote. “I will also hand over checks for a million dollars to 2 people to be spokesmen for the petition.”
Musk, a close ally of President Donald Trump, has poured about $20 million into the race to back conservative candidate Brad Schimel through spending from his own coffers and via two outside groups.
Kaul’s lawsuit in Dane County Circuit Court seeks a restraining order barring Musk “from any further promotion of the million-dollar gifts” to attendees of the planned Sunday event and “from making any payments to Wisconsin electors to vote.”
“The Wisconsin Department of Justice is committed to ensuring that elections in Wisconsin are safe, secure, free, and fair. We are aware of the offer recently posted by Elon Musk to award a million dollars to two people at an event in Wisconsin this weekend,” Kaul said in a statement. “Based on our understanding of applicable Wisconsin law, we intend to take legal action today to seek a court order to stop this from happening.”
In an odd twist, Crawford was initially assigned to oversee the case involving her race but a spokesman said it was a random assignment and that she will recuse.
Kaul said in a statement the case had been reassigned to Dane County Circuit Judge David Conway.
A spokesman for America PAC declined to comment on Kaul’s plans.
The move comes after Kaul and Milwaukee County District Attorney Kent Lovern received a letter from the liberal Madison-based Law Forward legal firm, Wisconsin Democracy Campaign and State Democracy Defenders Fund seeking “an immediate investigation.
“The groups asked Kaul and Lovern to review Musk’s America PAC’s offer to pay $100 to Wisconsin voters for signing a petition opposing ‘activist judges’ who have ruled against President Donald Trump and Musk’s Thursday announcement of plans to give two voters each $1 million checks.
The groups ask Kaul and Lovern to review whether the money awarded to petition signers violates the state’s law barring election bribery and whether the $1 million checks comply with the state’s lottery law.
“We further urge your office to take all necessary action toprevent any illegal activity from improperly influencing Wisconsin voters,” the groups wrote in the letter.
A spokesman for Schimel’s liberal opponent Susan Crawford said Friday Musk was trying to buy off Schimel and labeled his visit a “last-minute desperate distraction.”
“Wisconsinites don’t want a billionaire like Musk telling them who to vote for, and on Tuesday, voters should reject Musk’s lackey Brad Schimel,” spokesman Derrick Honeyman said.
A spokesman for Schimel did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
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USA TODAY