A federal judge in Texas has ruled that Elon Musk must face a lawsuit from voters who allege he misled them into signing a petition in exchange for a chance to win part of his $1 million-a-day giveaway. The case centers on claims that Musk used the campaign to improperly collect personal data during the 2024 U.S. presidential election season.
On Wednesday, August 20, 2025, U.S. District Judge Robert Pitman in Austin determined that Arizona resident Jacqueline McAferty had plausibly argued in her proposed class action that Musk and his political action committee, America PAC, wrongfully persuaded her to share identifying information under the pretense of supporting the U.S. Constitution. The petition drive took place late in the 2024 election cycle.
Attorneys for Musk and America PAC did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Musk created America PAC to back Republican Donald Trump’s ultimately successful presidential campaign.
According to McAferty, voters in seven battleground states were promised that $1 million recipients would be chosen at random, similar to a lottery system, but in reality had no genuine chance of receiving any payment. She also alleged that those who signed were required to disclose names, addresses, email addresses, and phone numbers.
In seeking dismissal of the case, Musk argued that several “red flags” demonstrated no illegal lottery had occurred. He noted that participants were told the $1 million recipients were “selected to earn” the money and expected to serve as America PAC spokespeople, which he said contradicted the idea of a prize giveaway.
Judge Pitman, however, highlighted that other representations suggested the money could indeed be “won” and was being “awarded.”
“It is plausible that plaintiff justifiably relied on those statements to believe that defendants were objectively offering her the chance to enter a random lottery—even if that is not what they subjectively intended to do,” Pitman wrote in his decision.
Pitman, appointed to the bench by President Barack Obama in 2014, also dismissed Musk’s contention that petition signers suffered no harm from providing personal information. He said an expert in political data brokerage could testify to the value of such data, especially from voters in swing states.
The lawsuit was initially filed on Election Day, November 5, 2024. One day earlier, a judge in Philadelphia declined to halt Musk’s giveaway, ruling that the city’s top prosecutor had not proven it constituted an illegal lottery.
Musk resides in Texas, where his electric car company Tesla is also headquartered in Austin.
The case is McAferty v. Musk et al, U.S. District Court, Western District of Texas, No. 24-01346.
