Elon Musk Faces Potential Legal Action After Promising $1 Million Checks to Voters in Wisconsin

Billionaire Elon Musk found himself at the center of a legal controversy after promising to hand out two $1 million checks in exchange for voters to turn out in a heated Supreme Court race in Wisconsin.

Musk was forced to clarify his intentions after he was accused of committing a felony.

"On Sunday night, I will give a talk in Wisconsin," Musk shared to his 219 million followers on X, formerly known as Twitter. "To clarify a previous post, entrance is limited to those who have signed the petition in opposition to activist judges. I will also hand over checks for a million dollars to 2 people to be spokesmen for the petition."

In his original post, Musk claimed entrance to the event would be "limited to those who have voted in the Supreme Court election."

"I will also personally hand over two checks for a million dollars each in appreciation for you taking the time to vote," he promised in the now-deleted post. "This is super important."

Scott Ainsworth, a Green Bay voter, already received $1 million for signing Musk’s petition and promoting it.

This led to confusion regarding who the recipients of the additional checks would be.

Musk's group previously offered financial incentives to those who signed the petition and referred others to do the same.

Susan Crawford, a liberal opponent of one of the Supreme Court candidates, labeled Musk's actions as a "last-minute distraction."

Ben Wikler, the Democratic Party of Wisconsin Chair, accused Musk of engaging in illegal behavior by offering money in exchange for votes to support a particular candidate.

"Elon Musk has committed a blatant felony by offering money for votes in order to help Brad Schimel. Musk’s illegal election bribery scheme to put Brad Schimel on the Supreme Court is a chainsaw attack on democracy and the rule of law in Wisconsin and our nation," Wikler wrote.

Wisconsin's former state elections chief, Kevin Kennedy, highlighted the legal gray area surrounding Musk's actions.

"When it comes to prosecuting this, you’ve got to remember there has to be an intent to commit a crime," he said. "Musk needs to say, ‘I gave this to get them to go to the polls.'"

The state's Attorney General Josh Kaul expressed the intention to take legal action to prevent the distribution of the $1 million checks, citing concerns about the integrity of the upcoming election.

"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 announced 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."