A federal judge ruled on Wednesday that an Arizona woman may move forward with parts of her lawsuit against Elon Musk’s America PAC, alleging she was deceived by a $1 million sweepstakes tied to the billionaire’s pro-Donald Trump political action committee, Bloomberg reported.
US District Judge Robert Pitman, presiding in Austin, Texas, said Jacqueline McAferty plausibly alleged she did not receive “what she bargained for – a random chance to win $1 million,” the report added.
McAferty claimed she would never have signed the PAC’s petition or provided personal identifying information if she knew winners were being hand-picked as campaign spokespeople rather than randomly selected.
MacAferty’s proposed class-action suit accused Musk and the PAC of misleading participants by suggesting the sweepstakes was a lottery-style contest. In reality, court findings revealed that the committee selected registered voters from key swing states to act as public advocates for Musk’s pro-Trump campaign effort, often chosen for their personal stories and required to sign employment contracts, the report added.
The lawsuit gained momentum shortly after the Philadelphia district attorney attempted, unsuccessfully, to shut down the contest before the November election, calling it an “unlawful lottery.” A judge denied that request, allowing the sweepstakes to proceed.
Judge Pitman did not rule on the merits of McAferty’s fraud claim but allowed her to pursue both fraud and breach of contract allegations. However, he dismissed her claim under the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act.
Musk’s legal team has not yet responded to requests for comment, the report added.
