Professor Examines Legal Questions Around Trump’s $5,000 Election Pledge

President Donald Trump's proposal to give $5,000 to every adult US citizen if Republicans retain control of Congress has prompted debate over whether the pledge could constitute vote buying, according to Austin Sarat, a professor of jurisprudence and political science at Amherst College.

President Donald Trump announced his proposed “Trump dividend” during the Republican midterm convention in Dallas.

Trump made the proposal in his keynote address at the Republican midterm convention in Dallas on Sept. 9. He said he would issue a $5,000 dividend to every adult citizen if Republicans won both the House and Senate in November.

Sarat wrote in The Conversation that the proposal raises questions under federal laws prohibiting payments made in exchange for votes.

Critics, including political commentator Sam Stein and Public Citizen co-president Lisa Gilbert, have characterized Trump's proposal as an attempt to influence voters.

However, Sarat also examined the distinction between traditional vote buying and a broader political promise.

He cited political scholar Simeon Nichter's use of the term “turnout buying” to describe practices in which political organizations provide benefits intended to encourage participation in elections.

The legal question is complicated because Trump has not said that an individual voter must cast a ballot for a Republican candidate to receive the payment.

Instead, he has tied the proposed payment to Republicans winning both chambers of Congress. Legal analysis published separately has noted that this distinction could be important under the federal vote-buying statute.

The proposal would also face major practical and fiscal obstacles. Estimates put the cost of a $5,000 payment to roughly 250 million adults at about $1.25 trillion.

The plan has not been enacted, and Trump has not provided full details on eligibility, funding or the mechanism for distributing the payments.