Elon Musk and a PAC affiliated with him were at the center of controversy in several swing states, including North Carolina, after failing to register voters in at least four swing states last week. David Weeler, a Democrat, filed a complaint with the North Carolina State Board of Elections (NCSBE) against the America PAC on Friday, August 2. Wheeler is a former candidate for North Carolina Insurance Commissioner who runs the left-leaning American Muckrakers PAC.
Wheeler alleges that the America PAC was taking information from individuals attempting to register on its website while failing to register them. Reporting from CNBC indicates that it occurred in the battleground states of Michigan, North Carolina, Georgia, and Wisconsin. While there has yet to be an indication that the PAC was failing to register voters in Pennsylvania, it could still see issues due to a failure to apply with the state’s online voter registration interface system.
At the time of writing, only two states are investigating the America PAC, North Carolina and Michigan. North Carolina Attorney General Josh Stein’s office has stated they are looking into the matter but have not yet launched a formal investigation. The NCSBE is conducting an investigation in North Carolina following the complaint filed by Wheeler.
While the NCSBE could not provide a copy of the complaint, it offered more context on the allegations via email than stated by the press.
The State Board of Elections received a complaint from a member of the public that the organization’s website was not submitting voter registration forms after communicating to applicants that it would do so, GS 163-82.6(a), that it was retaining confidential information provided on voter registration applications, GS 163-274(a)(16), and that it was misrepresenting the law to the public where the intent and the effect is to intimidate or discourage potential voters from exercising their right to vote, GS 163-275(17).
As with any complaint of alleged election law violations, the State Board reviews the allegations and investigates to determine whether any violations can be substantiated, in which case, the matter would be referred to a district attorney.
Lindsey Wakely, Deputy General Counsel for the North Carolina State Board of Elections
Both GS 163-274(a)(16) and GS 163-82.6(a) are class 2 misdemeanors, while GS 163-275(17) is a class I felony in North Carolina. While these allegations are very serious, it is unclear whether the PAC violates all the statutes cited in the complaint.
Stealing information charge
GS 163-274(a)(16) indicates that one cannot retain a registrant’s signature, full or partial Social Security number, date of birth, or the identity of the public agency email address or driver’s license number if they got that information from forms under GS 163-82.3. These forms are specific to voter registration forms created by the state board of elections, interstate forms designed by the Federal Elections Commission under section 9 of the National Voter Registration Act, or any agency application forms. This indicates that information collected from the website is legal for PACs and other organizations that register voters and legal for them to retain. While the America PAC did require emails and appears to have a required date of birth, this information was not taken from the registration form.
Instead, it seems to take the information from what is typically referred to as an “opt-in form.” It asked individuals to fill it out before it was supposed to send them a link to the North Carolina Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) to register to vote.
Opt-in forms are documents some companies will request individuals to fill out and provide their information in which they can reach out to you in the future. As something key to contacting individuals on elections, you must have a clearly listed opt-in/ opt-out option on the form.
Source: Gizmodo, https://gizmodo.com/elon-musks-pro-trump-website-accused-of-shady-data-collection-2000482608
This practice of requiring emails and date of birth is consistent with other organizations that assist in voter registration, including more progressive nonprofits such as Common Cause. Their opt-in form requires you to submit your name, address, date of birth, and email address to proceed before it moves you forward to the actual registration page.
Source: Common Cause, Register to Vote, https://www.commoncause.org/resources/register-to-vote/
Failing to register voters charge
NCSBE spokesperson Pat Gannon has clarified that it is illegal “for someone to fail to submit a voter’s registration form if that person has told a voter that they would be submitting the voter’s registration form.
GS 163-82.6(a) applies broadly to any form accepted under GS 163-82.3, not just physical registration forms. This would include registrations through agencies such as the DMV, which is the only way voters can register online in North Carolina. The questions the NCSBE will need to answer are: Did the PAC falsely indicate that a voter would be submitting a registration form, did the PAC clearly indicate that it would deliver said form, and did it then fail to deliver the form properly?
While it is clear that voters were not being moved to the correct website to register voters after filling in the opt-in document, it does appear to indicate that more would need to be done than just filling out the information in the opt-in form. After clicking on the “register to vote” prompt, the website would thank them for “…taking the first step to register to vote in [said state]. Please complete the form below, and we will help you complete your registration.”
Source: Gizmodo, https://gizmodo.com/elon-musks-pro-trump-website-accused-of-shady-data-collection-2000482608
The registration issue appears to be specific to August 1st and 2nd. CNBC sources familiar with the PAC indicate that links to registration on the website were functioning properly when the PAC first registered with the Federal Elections Commission in May. After reporting on August 2 indicated issues with the website, the PAC stated on their website that registration issues may have occurred with people.
Source: Wayback Machine, August 3rd screenshot for America PAC https://web.archive.org/web/20240803165121/https://theamericapac.org/
The PAC fully disabled its registration and absentee ballot request functions on Monday, August 5. It then took down its website late the following Wednesday, releasing a partial redesign the next morning.
The actions taken by the PAC in response to registration issues make it doubtful that the felony charges filed in Wheeler’s complaint are likely to go through. GS 163-275(17) requires that there be an intent and effect to intimidate or discourage potential voters from exercising their right to vote by misrepresenting the law. The registration process indicates that further action was required to register after completing the opt-in form, and the PAC has taken steps to solve the registration issue.
Following the idea of Hanlon’s Razor, this is likely an issue not born of malice but of stupidity on the part of the PAC. Reports have indicated several change-ups with the PAC since its inception in May, including a total overhaul of their grassroots team and replacement of its top leadership during its limited lifespan. With indications that the website initially connected voters to the prior websites to register voters, it is possible that something in their system failed to provide the link after filling out the opt-in form.
While I don’t believe the committee is in violation of North Carolina law for the data it collected, it could still find itself in trouble with failing to register voters under GS 163-82.6(a). The question about this violation will likely be if this was intentional or an accident brought about my technology issues.
