Judge Says My Pillow CEO Mike Lindell Must Pay $5 Million To Software Developer Who Disproved His Election Fraud Claims

In a new ruling, a federal judge confirmed that Mike Lindell, the CEO of My Pillow and a prominent right-wing conspiracy theorist, will be required to pay $5 million as a consequence of a contest he organized at one of his “cyber symposium” events after the 2020 election.

At the event, which Lindell hosted, participants were invited to engage in a “Prove Mike Wrong” challenge, which offered a chance to win $5 million if they could demonstrate that the data Lindell presented regarding the 2020 election was not authentic election data. The rules of the contest stipulated that participants could utilize arbitration if necessary.

Robert Zeidman, a software developer, accepted Lindell’s challenge and submitted a comprehensive 15-page report that asserted the data presented by Lindell had nothing to do with elections and did not demonstrate any fraud, as confirmed by a federal court decision on Wednesday.

Initially, Zeidman did not succeed in getting his prize but subsequently pursued arbitration against Lindell.

Zeidman ultimately emerged as the victor in the arbitration process.

Despite Lindell’s hopes that a federal judge would overturn the $5 million award granted to Zeidman, Judge John Tunheim of the U.S. District Court in Minnesota declined to do so and emphasized that the panel faced a challenging task to interpret such a poorly drafted contract. Judge Tunheim further affirmed that no evidence indicated the panel had exceeded its authority.

Zeidman previously told CNN, “The data was just so obviously bogus…It surprised me.” He underscored the importance that claims be based on reliable evidence and adhere to rigorous data analysis standards.

This is not Lindell’s first time in court for claims about the 2020 election. In 2021, Dominion Voting Systems filed a $1.3 billion lawsuit against him, which the Supreme Court recently ruled could proceed.

In October, attorneys that represented Lindell cut ties with him due to the millions of dollars he owed them. Lindell had confirmed at that time that he was out of money.