Pennsylvania Judge will not immediately push forward a lawsuit aimed at blocking Elon Musk from offering $1 million daily to swing state voters in the U.S. presidential election before Election Day. Musk did not attend the hearing held the same day and the case was transferred to federal court for review.
On Thursday morning, Judge Angelo Foglietta of Pennsylvania stated during the hearing held in Philadelphia that he would temporarily suspend the lawsuit filed by Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner while the federal court considers whether to accept the case.
Krasner’s office filed a lawsuit in state court on Monday against Musk and his campaign organization, “America PAC,” accusing them of engaging in behavior involving “illegal lottery” by randomly giving out $1 million to registered voters in battleground states each day, in an attempt to solicit personal data from Pennsylvania residents and influence voters in the presidential election.
At Krasner’s request, the judge scheduled an early court hearing on Thursday morning to allow both sides to present their arguments. However, Musk did not appear in person but was represented by his lawyer at the hearing, seeking to transfer the case to federal court.
Foglietta pointed out that Musk, as the defendant in this case, should have appeared in person at the hearing, but refused to immediately sanction the tech mogul.
Musk’s lawyer, Matthew Haverstick, argued that “America PAC” should be the sole defendant and cited Musk’s busy schedule as the reason he couldn’t appear in court hours after the hearing was arranged.
Krasner’s team questioned this reasoning, but the judge countered, stating that the owner of the rocket company SpaceX would not “land in Philadelphia by rocket ship.”
The case has now been transferred to the federal district court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, under the oversight of U.S. District Judge Gerald Pappert, a former Pennsylvania Attorney General and Republican appointed as a federal judge by former Democratic President Obama. He did not immediately schedule a hearing.
Democratic District Attorney Krasner hopes the case will stay in the state court in Philadelphia, a city led by Democrats.
Krasner’s lawyer, John Summers, stated that he will swiftly seek to have the lawsuit sent back to state court. He told reporters outside the courthouse, “After all, this is a case involving state law issues.”
In a document, Musk stated that Krasner’s lawsuit involves issues of free speech and election interference, which fall under the jurisdiction of federal court.
On October 19, Musk handed a $1 million check to an attendee at a campaign event in Pennsylvania, as part of a campaign organized by “America PAC” supporting former President and other Republican candidates, with the daily prize draw set to continue until the U.S. election day on November 5.
This event falls into a gray area of U.S. election laws, with legal professionals divided on whether it violates federal laws prohibiting payment for voter registration.