A judge in the US state of Pennsylvania has put the proceedings on a controversial million-dollar campaign by Tesla boss Elon Musk in the presidential election campaign on hold. Judge Angelo Foglietta said at a hearing Thursday that he would not immediately move forward with the lawsuit, which aims to stop Musk's $1 million voter gift before the Nov. 5 U.S. election. A federal court could now consider whether it should deal with the case. Musk can thus continue the advertising campaign, which the public prosecutor sees as an illegal lottery, since the case can probably only be resolved after the election on Tuesday. The billionaire entrepreneur, who supports the Republican Donald Trump with large sums of money, was summoned to the hearing but did not appear.
Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner tried to stop the fundraiser less than a week before the closely contested presidential election between Trump and Democrat Kamala Harris. Prosecutors accuse Musk's America PAC of running an “illegal lottery” and tricking Pennsylvania residents into giving up personal information. The billionaire had promised to raffle off $1 million a day to registered voters who signed his petition for free speech and gun rights . Legal experts disagree about whether the action violates federal law.
