Elon Musk's $1 million handout winners are connected to Republican causes [View all]

Source: The Verge

On Sunday, a few thousand people in Green Bay, Wisconsin, gathered to hear Elon Musk speak — and give away two giant cardboard checks for $1 million. Attendance at the event was limited to people who had added their names to a petition against “activist judges,” created by Musk’s America PAC. He has promised money and other “surprise announcements” to people who sign the petition, and the splashy million-dollar giveaway ratcheted up the stakes. After their names were announced, winners shuffled onstage to awkwardly accept the prop checks and pause for a photo op with Musk, who has poured tens of millions of dollars into the race for Wisconsin’s Supreme Court seat.

The checks are Musk’s latest attempt to use his vast wealth to turn out voters ahead of Tuesday’s election. He has promised $100 to voters who sign the “activist judges petition” and micro-earnings for people who hold up a photo of Musk’s chosen candidate with a thumbs-up. The petition and the promises of money are a not-so-subtle way of collecting registered voter data.

It’s the same playbook Musk deployed ahead of the November presidential election that some elections experts say broke the law around vote buying. This time, Musk and his America PAC are looking to tilt the close Wisconsin race toward Brad Schimel, a conservative judge and outspoken supporter of President Donald Trump. Schimel is running against the more liberal Susan Crawford, who has garnered support from the state Democratic party.

Read more: https://www.theverge.com/politics/640230/elon-musk-wisconsin-supreme-court-million-dollars-brad-schimel