Craig Lassig / AFP
- Mark Cuban on CNBC said the presidential campaign is now a fight between Kamala Harris and Elon Musk.
- Cuban said the outcome of the election hinges on voter turnout, which Musk has made a priority.
- Musk is offering cash incentives to register voters and a $1 million lottery to swing state voters.
Billionaire businessman Mark Cuban on Monday said the presidential campaign has become a battle between Vice President Kamala Harris and Tesla CEO Elon Musk rather than Donald Trump.
Speaking on CNBC's "Squawk Box," Cuban said Harris is fighting against Musk, a campaign surrogate for Trump, as much as she is against her political rival, saying that the outcome of this year's election will hinge on voter turnout — an issue Musk has made a priority in recent weeks.
"Really it comes down to 'get out the vote,'" Cuban, who has campaigned on behalf of Harris, said of the election. "And the crazy thing is, it's the Harris campaign versus Elon — not even versus Trump."
Musk, who first endorsed Trump in July before launching his super PAC in support of the former president, has prioritized increasing voter turnout ahead of the election.
This month, Musk's America PAC offered $100 to registered Pennsylvania voters who signed a petition supporting free speech and the right to bear arms and $47 to swing state voter referrals who also signed up. On Saturday, he also pledged to give away $1 million checks to randomly selected petition signers each day until the election on November 5.
In a statement to Business Insider, Cuban said, "Elon is running Trump's ground game."
"That is what will drive GOTV, which I think will determine the race." Cuban added, referring to get out the vote efforts.
Brian Hughes, a Trump campaign senior advisor, told Business Insider: "When you have dozens of industry leaders like Elon Musk and David Sacks among the long list of supporters, it is a recognition that President Trump is the clear choice."
The Harris campaign and representatives for Musk did not immediately respond to requests for comment from Business Insider.
In his appearance on CNBC, Cuban described Musk's payments for registering voters as "innovative" and "desperate." The two billionaire businessmen have repeatedly traded public jabs over their support of opposing candidates in this year's election.
"You only do that because you think you have to, but you know, using the sweepstakes is not a bad idea," Cuban said. "Whether or not it'll work is a whole 'nother thing. It just as easily could backfire, but you don't know until you try."
Election law and political science experts who spoke to Business Insider said the $1 million giveaway may not be legal, as election laws make it illegal to pay people to register to vote.
Other election law experts have argued that Musk's payments to registered voters fall may into a legal gray area because the eligibility requirement hinges on signing the petition, not specifically registering to vote.
Matthew Alvarez, a partner at Rutan and Tucker law firm specializing in election law matters, told BI that while the payments may not be entirely legal, Musk will unlikely face criminal penalties for his actions.
Musk hasn't publicly responded to suggestions the payments may not work or could be illegal, instead posting on his social media platform X that "The foaming-at-the-mouth reaction from radical leftists is worth it."