Musk: My Offer to Sign Petition Is Now $100

UPDATE Oct 18, 2024 2:14 PM CDT

Reassessing the market, Elon Musk is upping his if-you-act-now offer to voters to sign a petition in exchange for cash. The billionaire on Thursday posted on X that he's more than doubling the original offer of $47, to be paid by his pro-Donald Trump super PAC, NBC News reports. "If you're a registered Pennsylvania voter, you & whoever referred you will now get $100 for signing our petition in support of free speech & right to bear arms," Musk posted. The deadline is Monday night, he said; voter registration in Pennsylvania for the Nov. 5 election ends that day.

Oct 7, 2024 4:20 PM CDT

Elon Musk has kicked off an effort to identify potential Donald Trump voters in swing states with an offer the billionaire advertises as "easy money." Musk's America PAC wants people in seven states to sign an online petition pledging their support for the Constitution's first two amendments, which the PAC says "guarantee freedom of speech and the right to bear arms." The site collects each signer's contact information. Then, "for every person you refer who is a swing state voter, you get $47!" the billionaire Trump supporter posted on X. The offer is good for two weeks, the Hill reports.

Once Musk has a list of those names, the voters—who would be considered energized by political professionals—could be subject to lobbying by the PAC to turn out for Trump on Nov. 5, per the New York Times. The goal is to collect 1 million names, the post said; a million referrals would mean Musk's tab would be $47 million. A campaign finance lawyer said the effort seems to be legal. "The fact that they are only paying the referrer rather than the signatory further insulates the PAC from any accusations that they are buying votes," Brendan Fischer said. "Ultimately, what America PAC is doing here is spending money for voter data, which PACs and campaigns do all the time."

story continues below

Online signers are directed to a page listing voter registration information for the seven states, per CNBC. Before paying the $47, the super PAC promises it will verify all information. Other fine print: "Eligible people may only list one eligible person as their referrer," the offer says. Payment is limited to referrals for people living in these states—or commonwealth, if it prefers—with the potential to decide the presidential race: Pennsylvania, Georgia, North Carolina, Nevada, Arizona, Michigan, and Wisconsin. (Musk made his Trump rally debut on Saturday.)