GREEN BAY (NBC 26) — A La Crosse prosecutor said he will not press charges against Elon Musk over bribery allegations in the state’s 2025 Supreme Court election.
In a letter released Tuesday, La Crosse County District Attorney Tim Gruenke said the Wisconsin Elections Commission (WEC) referred the matter for review after a March 27, 2025, post from Musk’s account appeared to offer attendees at a Green Bay event a chance to receive $1 million for voting in the election.
The original post said entrance to the event was limited to people who had voted in the Supreme Court election and that Musk would “personally hand over two checks for a million dollars each in appreciation for you taking the time to vote.”
About 12 hours later, a second post clarified that entrance was limited to people who signed a petition opposing “activist judges” and that the money would go to two people selected as spokespeople for the petition.
Gruenke said the initial post could have been interpreted as offering a financial incentive tied to voting, potentially violating Wisconsin election law. However, he said the revised post clarified the intent and no one ultimately received money for voting or promising to vote.
"In the past, I have routinely worked with campaigns and candidates from both parties and non-partisan elections to correct any potential violations of election/campaign laws," Gruenke stated in the letter. "In this case, without the famous name attached and the large dollar amounts involved, it is a simple case of a poorly worded statement that was corrected and brought into compliance with the law."
The prosecutor added he did not believe a jury would convict Musk, citing the ambiguity of the original wording, the follow-up clarification and the lack of evidence that anyone was paid to vote.
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