Krispy Kreme doughnuts, Lime scooters rides and Johnny Rockets milkshakes are among the free items major companies will be handing out on Election Day to residents who cast their votes—and not all of them are requiring proof.
Doughnuts at a Krispy Kreme store.
The North Carolina-based Krispy Kreme doughnut chain will give out "I Voted" stickers and free original glazed doughnuts at participating U.S. shops on Tuesday because "participating in our democracy should be celebrated," brand officer Dave Skena said in a statement—and recipients don't have to prove they cast their ballots to get their freebie.
Burger chain Johnny Rockets will give free milkshakes with any in-store purchase on Tuesday to diners who show proof they voted (an "I Voted" sticker counts).
At Lazy Dog restaurants, which number about 50 across eight states, diners with an "I Voted" sticker will get a free non-alcoholic drink with an entree purchase.
Bistros at the furniture store Ikea will give a free frozen yogurt to shoppers on Tuesday to "celebrate and support voting rights," and while recipients don't have to prove they cast their ballot, they do have to present a printed or electronic version of this coupon.
Voters can take a free Lime scooter or bike ride to the polls by entering the code VOTE2024 at checkout now through Tuesday.
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Other companies are offering election day discounts. Registered voters can get half off their Lyft rideshare, bikeshare, or scooter ride between 5 a.m. and 10 p.m. local time on Tuesday using the code VOTE24. Uber is offering 50% off rides to polling places (which users can look up in the app) during voting hours. At Yogurtland, the frozen yogurt shop, visitors with an "I Voted" sticker will get 15% off.
It's technically illegal under federal election law to provide incentives to vote, but the law has seemingly never been enforced against companies, one expert told the New York Times in 2018. The giveaways become legal if they’re opened up to anyone on election day whether they voted or not, like Krispy Kreme’s promotion. It’s also legal to dole out the freebies in non-federal elections.
Elon Musk—a prominent supporter of Donald Trump—is giving $1 million daily to a random swing state voter who signs his petition, in a controversial giveaway that some argue is illegal. Musk announced the $1 million daily awards at a Trump rally on Oct. 19, weeks after he announced any America PAC petition signee who refers another registered swing state voter to sign the petition by Oct. 21 would receive $47. He then upped that offer for Pennsylvania voters, offering $100 per referral. Voters qualify for the giveaway by signing the petition that calls for support of free speech and the right to bear arms, but does not make any other specific call to action. The petition is run by Musk’s America PAC, which has spent millions backing Trump’s election bid. Some have argued the giveaways violate the federal law that bans “pay(ing) or offer(ing) to pay or accept(ing) payment either for registration to vote or for voting,” but whether or not it is illegal to pay someone to sign a petition is more ambiguous.
More than 55 million people have already cast their votes in the 2024 election via early in-person or mail-in voting and that number is expected to triple by the end of the day Tuesday. About two-thirds of the voting-eligible population turned out for the 2020 presidential election, which this year includes 244 million Americans. If voter turnout is that high again (2020 was the highest turnout for any national election since 1990), more than 161 million people will vote. The race between Donald Trump and Kamala Harris is still extremely tight, and the election will likely be decided by who can win voters in seven key swing states: Arizona, Nevada, Georgia, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin and Michigan. The winner of Pennsylvania, which has the most electoral votes of any battleground state, is likely to win the election. Polls released Wednesday show the swing state race between the two major party candidates is tied, with Harris ahead in the Upper Midwest and Nevada and Trump leading in the Southeast and Arizona. Pennsylvania is still a tossup.