Elon Musk did not attend the hearing in Philadelphia regarding his controversial $1 million giveaway

PHILADELPHIA — A judge in Philadelphia held a brief hearing Thursday on a bid by the city attorney’s office to shut down Elon Musk’s $1 million-a-day hoaxes in battleground states. The gifts come from Musk’s political organization, which is seeking to support Donald Trump’s presidential campaign.

Musk’s lawyers late Wednesday filed a motion to move the case to federal court, saying it involves a federal election issue, but that didn’t stop state Judge Angelo Foglietta from holding a hearing at City Hall.

After accepting comments from both sides, the judge put the state case on hold while Musk tries to appeal it in federal court. Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner hopes to argue that the issues should be resolved in state court.

Krasner’s lawyers said Musk and the American PAC “brazenly” continued the lottery every day this week, including this morning, despite Krasner’s attempts to shut it down. The Democrat filed a lawsuit Monday to stop the American PAC sweepstakes, which will last until Election Day and be open to registered voters in battleground states who sign a petition supporting the Constitution.

Election law experts have raised questions about whether it violates a federal law that prohibits anyone from paying others to vote. Musk described the money as both a prize and earnings for his work as a spokesman for the group.

Krasner’s lawyers said Musk should be punished for failing to appear at the hearing. The judge delayed any decision on the issue until it is clear whether the case will be tried in federal or state court.

Attorney Matthew Haverstick, who represents both the billionaire and the political action committee, said the PAC, not Musk, is the only appropriate defendant. He said Krasner named the tech mogul as a publicity stunt to draw attention to the case. He also said Musk failed to “materialize” in Philadelphia within 12 hours of the hearing being scheduled for Wednesday.

Krasner’s lawyers disputed this, saying the world’s richest man could land a SpaceX spaceship in the city to hold the hearing if he wanted.

They also questioned the lottery’s legality, noting that some of the winners live in Pennsylvania, which has a large popular vote, and that Musk has not released rules and regulations regarding the process.

Krasner said he could still consider criminal charges because he is charged with protecting the public from both illegal lotteries and “interference with election integrity.”

Krasner said in the lawsuit that America PAC and Musk “are undisputedly violating Pennsylvania’s statutory prohibitions against illegal lotteries and consumer deception.”

Both Trump and Kamala Harris have visited the state multiple times to compete for Pennsylvania’s 19 electoral votes.

Musk, who founded SpaceX and Tesla and owns X, has gone all-in with Trump this election, saying he believes civilization will be at stake if he loses. He conducts much of his efforts to get votes for Trump through his super PAC, which can raise and spend unlimited amounts of money.

He gave more than $70 million to super PACs to help Trump and other Republicans win in November.