A government watchdog group in Wisconsin is suing Elon Musk over claims he illegally bribed voters by handing out cash prizes during the state’s hotly-contested Supreme Court election earlier this year. Musk spent $20 million on the court election, which included giving away $1 million cheques to three voters in the days before the ballot and offering $100 to members of the electorate who signed a petition opposing “activist judges” via his America PAC. The legal complaint, filed by the Wisconsin Democracy Campaign and two Wisconsin voters, claims these moves were in “a brazen scheme to bribe Wisconsin citizens to vote” and a violation of the state’s electoral laws. Court documents filed by the plaintiffs claim Musk’s actions create “the risk that Wisconsin elections will become an open auction, where votes go to the preferred candidates of the highest bidders and the election outcome is determined by which candidate has a patron willing and able to pay the highest sum to Wisconsin voters.” It follows a similar lawsuit filed by the state’s attorney general two days prior to the election, which was rejected by lower courts before the Supreme Court agreed to hear it on procedural grounds. Musk’s preferred candidate in the race, conservative Brad Schimel, was beaten decisively in the race by Democratic-backed challenger Susan Crawford.
Read it at The Washington Post
