Pennsylvania governor to probe Elon Musk’s $1m daily pledge to registered voters

Tech billionaire Elon Musk says he will give $1 million daily to registered voters in battleground states who sign a petition supporting free speech and the right to bear arms.

On Saturday, Musk gave a $1 million cheque to an attendee at a Donald Trump rally in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.

The rally was hosted by America PAC, a political action group set up by the Tesla CEO to back Trump in the November 5 presidential election.

Musk handed the second $1 million cheque to a female voter on Sunday, according to PAC.

“We want to try to get over a million, maybe 2 million voters in the battleground states to sign the petition in support of the first and second amendment,” the tech mogul said.

“We are going to be awarding $1 million randomly to people who have signed the petition, every day, from now until the election.”

To be eligible for the $1 million, petitioners must be registered voters and must reside in one of the seven swing states: Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin.

The petition also offers $100 to each registered Pennsylvania voter who signs, and $100 for referring a registered Pennsylvania voter to sign.

Pennsylvania is a key state for Trump and Kamala Harris, the Democratic nominee.

However, the legality of Musk’s giveaways has come under intense scrutiny.

It is a federal crime to induce people to vote or to reward them for getting registered.

According to the US justice department, the prohibition does not only apply to monetary expenditures but anything of monetary value.

Josh Shapiro, governor of Pennsylvania, said Musk’s freebies were “deeply concerning” and “is something that law enforcement could take a look at”.

Shapiro, a Democrat, was previously the state’s attorney general.

Musk is an ardent Trump supporter and Harris critic.

Trump has said if elected he would appoint Musk to head a government efficiency commission.

A string of surveys show Harris with a narrow national lead over Trump. The candidates are however virtually tied in certain swing states.