Philadelphia judge sets hearing for Elon Musk over his $1 million sweepstakes

Elon Musk was summoned to a court hearing in Philadelphia over the millionaire sweepstakes set up by his political action committee, the America PAC. The civil case was filed by the Democratic district attorney, Larry Krasner, to prevent X's owner from continuing to raffle money to registered voters in key states.

The emergency court hearing is in response to a lawsuit by Krasner, who accuses Musk of operating an illegal lottery and attempting to influence voters in the November presidential election.

"The Philadelphia district attorney has a responsibility to protect the public from public nuisances and unfair business practices, including illegal lotteries. The DA also has a responsibility to protect the public from interference with the integrity of elections," the Philadelphia DA's office said of the case.

Krasner initially clarified that his legal action was not focused on the vote-buying that some Democrats had alleged, but purely on its legality as a "lottery."

"This case is straightforward because America PAC and Musk are indisputably violating Pennsylvania's statutory prohibitions against illegal lotteries and misleading consumers," the text adds.

While the lawsuit is initially civil, it does not rule out a possible criminal action.

Musk's sweepstakes is subject to the signing of a petition by his super PAC, America PAC, on free speech and the right to bear arms.

"The First and Second Amendments guarantee freedom of speech and the right to bear arms. By signing below, I pledge to support the First and Second Amendments," Musk's petition reads.

"I have a surprise for you. We're going to award $1 million randomly to people who have signed the petition, every day from now until the election," the mogul said before the first drawing in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. The businessman is embarking on a tour of different counties in the Keystone State to increase voting intention in favor of his friend Donald Trump. The first winner was John Dreher, who described himself as a "big fan" of Musk.