Elon Musk tells followers to vote for Republican congressional candidates
Elon Musk on Monday encouraged "independent-minded voters" to cast their ballots for Republicans in Tuesday’s midterm congressional contests as a check on President Biden.
“To independent-minded voters: Shared power curbs the worst excesses of both parties, therefore I recommend voting for a Republican Congress, given that the Presidency is Democratic,” Musk wrote on Twitter.
“Hardcore Democrats or Republicans never vote for the other side, so independent voters are the ones who actually decide who’s in charge!” he added.
Musk closed his deal to buy Twitter late last month and has signaled he will relax content moderation on the site after a “council” reviews the platform’s current policies, raising alarm among civil rights groups who believe the changes will cause an increase in misinformation and hate speech on Twitter.
A new version of Twitter’s rules under Musk's ownership published on Monday appeared to remove some policies in place ahead of the midterm elections, including labeling “misleading information” and directing users to information about voting with “prebunks.”
The new rules, however, do state that users cannot use Twitter “for the purpose of manipulating or interfering in elections or other civic processes.”
Musk has previously indicated he voted for President Biden in 2020 and that he donated to and voted for Hillary Clinton.
“In the past I voted Democrat, because they were (mostly) the kindness party,” Musk tweeted in May. “But they have become the party of division & hate, so I can no longer support them and will vote Republican. Now, watch their dirty tricks campaign against me unfold.”
In June, Musk called billionaire and Los Angeles mayoral candidate Rick Caruso (D) “awesome,” adding that the city is “fortunate” to have him running in the election. Caruso, a former Republican, is running against Rep. Karen Bass (D-Calif.).
“It is rare for me to endorse political candidates,” Musk said at the time. “My political leanings are moderate, so neither fully Republican nor Democrat, which I am confident is the case for most Americans.”
Since taking over Twitter, Musk has railed against activists pressuring advertisers to halt business with the social media platform.
Last week, Musk sparred with Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) over the Tesla CEO's plans to verify users for $8 per month.
“Lmao at a billionaire earnestly trying to sell people on the idea that ‘free speech’ is actually a $8/mo subscription plan,” Ocasio-Cortez tweeted.
“Your feedback is appreciated, now pay $8,” Musk responded.