A group founded by Elon Musk is claiming that it will be offering $100 to Wisconsin voters who agree to oppose what it is calling “activist judges” — marking the latest giveaway from the billionaire, who has become a key figure in Donald Trump’s White House.
The Musk-founded America PAC announced on X on Thursday, March 20, that Wisconsin voters who sign a petition on its website — essentially siding against what the group refers to as “activist judges who impose their own views” — will be given a “special offer” of $100 to sign, as well as an additional $100 for “each signer they refer.”
The petition, which arrives amid the high-stakes Wisconsin Supreme Court race and ends on the day of the election on April 1, reads as follows: “Judges should interpret laws as written, not rewrite them to fit their personal or political agendas. By signing below, I’m rejecting the actions of activist judges who impose their own views and demanding a judiciary that respects its role — interpreting, not legislating.”
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Elon Musk arrives to the inauguration of U.S. President-elect Donald Trump on Jan. 20, 2025
In the election, the Democratic-backed Susan Crawford faces competition from Brad Schimel, a candidate that ABC News reports has been backed by the America PAC and Building America’s Future (both of which are aligned with the billionaire Tesla founder) in the sum of nearly $20 million.
Crawford and Schimel are vying for a 10-year term to replace retiring Justice Ann Walsh Bradley, who is generally regarded as left-leaning. The upcoming election will determine whether the Wisconsin Supreme Court skews liberal or conservative.
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According to The Washington Post, which cites a person familiar with the matter, Musk also donated to GOP members of Congress this week who have either introduced articles of impeachment against federal judges or backed such efforts.
As for the latest “special offer” from the Musk-founded group, the Tesla CEO reposted the America PAC news to his X account on Thursday.
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Elon Musk endorses Donald Trump at an Oct. 5, 2024, campaign rally in Butler, Pa.
The America PAC petition comes months after Musk announced a similar giveaway in October at an America PAC event in Harrisburg, Pa., when he vowed to award $1 million daily to a swing-state Trump supporter ahead of the 2024 presidential election in November.
At the time, Musk called the stunt “kind of fun,” adding that “it seems like a good use of money basically.”
Registered voters had to similarly sign a petition to qualify, as the America PAC website noted that signers “must be registered voters of Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, or Wisconsin.”
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Musk’s October giveaway was called out as a possible violation of federal election laws, which note that anyone who “pays or offers to pay or accepts payment either for registration to vote or for voting shall be fined not more than $10,000 or imprisoned not more than five years, or both.”
As previously reported by The Associated Press, while Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner filed suit to have it shut down, he was found to have “failed to provide any evidence of misuse beyond mere speculation” in Musk’s giveaway.
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Elon Musk watches Donald Trump’s presidential address to Congress on March 4, 2025
The latest “special offer” in Wisconsin comes amid drama over reports by The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal, which claimed that the Tesla CEO would attend a briefing at the Pentagon on Friday about a secret U.S. military plan for a potential war with China. An official who spoke with the Journal claimed Musk was being given the briefing “because he asked for one.”
Trump later called the reports “completely untrue” on his Truth Social platform, while Musk wrote on X that he looks forward to “the prosecutions of those at the Pentagon who are leaking maliciously false information to NYT.”
Sean Parnell, the chief Defense Department spokesperson, told the Times: “The Defense Department is excited to welcome Elon Musk to the Pentagon on Friday. He was invited by Secretary [Pete] Hegseth and is just visiting.”
Hegseth himself weighed in on X, denying that Musk would be shown “top secret” plans and describing the visit as “an informal meeting about innovation, efficiencies & smarter production.”
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