Musk PAC tells Philadelphia judge the $1 million sweepstakes winners are not chosen by chance

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — A lawyer for Elon Musk ‘s governmental action committee told a judge successful Philadelphia connected Monday that alleged “winners” of his $1 million-a-day elector sweepstakes successful plaything states are not chosen by chance but are alternatively chosen to beryllium paid “spokespeople” for nan group.

GOP lawyer Chris Gober besides said that nan recipients Monday and Tuesday will travel from Arizona and Michigan, respectively, and truthful will not impact nan Pennsylvania election. He said nan recipients are chosen based connected their individual stories and motion a statement pinch nan governmental organization, America PAC.

“The $1 cardinal recipients are not chosen by chance,” Gober said Monday. “We cognize precisely who will beryllium announced arsenic nan $1 cardinal recipient coming and tomorrow.”

Musk did not be nan hearing, held connected nan time earlier nan statesmanlike election. Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner took nan witnesser guidelines Monday and called nan sweepstakes a scam arsenic he asked nan judge to unopen it down.

America PAC hopes nan lottery will thief Donald Trump’s statesmanlike campaign. Krasner said 18 prizes person been announced to date.

Lawyers for Musk and his America PAC confirmed to nan judge they do not scheme to widen nan lottery beyond Tuesday.

However, Krasner called it an forbidden lottery nether Pennsylvania law, pinch nary published rules aliases privateness policies for nan accusation nan PAC collects connected voters who motion an oath nan U.S. Constitution arsenic they registry for nan sweepstakes.

“They were scammed for their information,” Krasner testified Monday. “It has almost unlimited use.”

Krasner’s lawyer, John Summers, said Musk is “the heartbeat of America PAC,” and nan personification announcing nan winners and presenting nan checks.

“He was nan 1 who presented nan checks, albeit ample cardboard checks. We don’t really cognize if location are immoderate existent checks,” Summers said.

Common Pleas Court Judge Angelo Foglietta was presiding complete nan lawsuit astatine Philadelphia City Hall aft Musk and nan PAC mislaid an effort to move it to national court.

Krasner has said he could still see criminal charges, arsenic he’s tasked pinch protecting some lotteries and nan integrity of elections. In nan lawsuit, he said nan defendants are “indisputably violating” Pennsylvania’s lottery laws.

Pennsylvania remains a cardinal battleground authorities pinch 19 electoral votes and some Trump and Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris person many times visited nan state, including stops planned Monday successful the last hours of nan campaign.