Elon Musk’s Super PAC was forced to delete, edit, and replace a video of one of the winners of its $1 million giveaway in which the Wisconsin woman said she was paid to vote.
The DOGE head campaigned hard—with both his words and millions of dollars—on behalf of the Republican-backed candidate for Wisconsin’s supreme court. Nevertheless, Brad Schimel wound up losing decisively to Democratic-backed Susan Crawford on Tuesday.
One of Musk’s tactics in the race sparked particular outcry from his critics. During a rally on behalf of Schimel on Sunday, the world’s richest man paid $1 million each to two Wisconsin voters. The stunt was a reprisal of one he pulled on behalf of Donald Trump in the fall, when he gave away $1 million a day to voters registered in swing states.
ADVERTISEMENT
Now, America PAC seems to have moved to protect itself from legal action under Wisconsin’s anti-bribery laws, which prevent paying people to win their vote.
In the original version of a video from one of the million-dollar winners, posted to the PAC’s social media on Monday morning, Ekaterina Deistler said, “I did exactly what Elon Musk told everyone to do: sign the petition, refer friends and family, vote, and now I have a million dollars.”
Musk offered $100 to each person who signed the petition in question, which declared opposition to “activist judges,” plus another $100 for each additional Wisconsin voter they refer to sign it as well.
The original video was deleted and replaced with a new one on Tuesday afternoon. This version, which remains up, has one key difference: It eliminates the word “vote,” so Deistler is no longer saying that she was paid to vote in the election.
When asked why video was removed, Andrew Romeo, a spokesperson for America PAC, told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, “I don’t think we’re going to comment on it.”
The Daily Beast has reached out to representatives for America PAC for comment.
Officially, to avoid breaking anti-bribery law, the winners of the giveaway are being paid for their work as spokespeople on behalf of America PAC’s petition. The other winner, Nicholas Jacobs, leads Wisconsin’s College Republicans. Deistler is a graphic designer who appears to have no background in politics.
Crawford’s victory over Schimel preserved a liberal majority on the swing state’s court. After pouring cash into the ordinarily low-profile race, Musk on Tuesday said the outcome could “determine the fate of Western civilization.”
In a Fox News interview, Musk made clear the reason for the race’s significance in his eyes—namely, that the court could rule on whether Wisconsin’s congressional districts are redrawn, opening the door for one party or the other to gain an advantage in House races.
After the outcome of the court race was clear, Musk was singing a different tune. He downplayed its significance, writing on X that an added voter ID requirement in Wisconsin was actually “the most important thing” all along.
Wisconsin already requires a photo ID to vote. The constitutional amendment that voters passed on Tuesday makes it harder to remove that requirement in the future.
