Elon Musk’s $1m winners ‘have already voted’

Tech mogul drumming up registration with giveaway — but first two claimants are already on record as Republicans

Two people who won $1 million each in a controversial giveaway by Elon Musk are reported to be registered Republicans who have already voted.
Mr Musk, a supporter of Donald Trump, is attempting to drive up voter registration among Republicans in battleground states ahead of the presidential election.
The Tesla billionaire handed over two $1 million cheques at the weekend to Kristine Fishell and John Dreher of Pennsylvania after they signed a petition supporting the US Constitution.
However, Politico reports that voting records show the pair are Republicans who were already registered to vote and had cast their ballots by mail this year.
It raises questions about how much impact Mr Musk will have on the presidential race despite committing $75 million of his own money for Trump through his America PAC campaign group.
The Telegraph has attempted to confirm the Politico report. Public records show that an individual who matches data available on Ms Fishell registered as a Republican in 2009 and was registered to submit an absentee ballot, while information on Mr Dreher was not immediately available.
Mr Musk has vowed to give $1 million each day until the election on Nov 5 to a selected person who signs the petition.
However, Democrats have warned that the latest venture to give money to registered voters in the must-win state of Pennsylvania may fall foul of US election law.
The online petition reads: “The First and Second Amendments guarantee freedom of speech and the right to bear arms. By signing below, I am pledging my support for the First and Second Amendments”.
To be eligible to win the money, those signing the petition must be a registered voter and live in one of the seven swing states of Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.
The petition also offers $100 to each registered Pennsylvania voter who signs and $100 for referring a registered Pennsylvania voter to sign.
On Saturday, Mr Musk handed over a $1 million cheque to a man named John Dreher in Harrisburg, the capital of Pennsylvania.
On Sunday, he handed a second $1 million cheque to a woman wearing a Trump T-shirt at an event in Pittsburgh in footage shared online by America PAC.
The woman embraced Mr Musk on stage and thanked him for using his “wealth and responsibility” to save free speech. “We just all appreciate it, we really do,” she told him.
Josh Shapiro, Pennsylvania’s Democratic governor, has called for law enforcement to investigate Mr Musk’s drive to give money to registered voters in his state, calling it “deeply concerning”.
Federal law bans anyone from paying or receiving money as an inducement or reward to vote or to register to vote, an offence punishable by prison time.
“Musk obviously has a right to be able to express his views,” Mr Shapiro told NBC’s Meet the Press.
“But when you start flowing this kind of money into politics, I think it raises serious questions that folks may want to take a look at.”
Mr Musk’s lawyers reportedly believe the businessman is in the clear since he is not directly paying voters to register.