Photo: ANP
Twitter owner Elon Musk urged people to vote Republican in the US Senate and House of Representatives midterm elections on Tuesday. The world’s richest man shared that message in a tweet to his nearly 115 million followers on social media.
Musk reasons that power sharing limits the worst excesses of both camps. “That’s why I recommend voting for Congress Republican,” said the wealthy businessman. This means that President Joe Biden’s Democratic Party will lose control of Congress, raising the risk of a continuing political stalemate.
A few days ago, Biden sharply criticized Musk’s control of Twitter. “Musk is taking over a company that spreads lies around the world,” Biden said at a fundraiser in Illinois. “There are no more editors in America. How can we expect young people to understand what is at stake?”
After his recent takeover of Twitter, Musk has vowed to bring freedom of expression back to the platform. At the same time, he argues, hate speech is not being unleashed. Many of the world’s biggest brands have paused their ads across Twitter, deterred by Musk’s disregard for content restrictions.
Unlike the Netherlands, in the United States it is not surprising for celebrities to indicate which political party they prefer. Musk said earlier this year that he voted Republican in an election in Texas. Before that, Musk’s choice in the election usually went to the Democrats.
