WASHINGTON, Nov 7 (Reuters) – Billionaire Elon Musk suggested that voters choose Republican candidates for Congress in the United States on Tuesday, just days after taking control of powerful social media giant Twitter Inc. Medieval Election.
Musk and Tesla too(TSLA.O) The CEO has faced criticism from some groups over his strict stance on free speech. They expect his stance to increase misinformation and hate speech on the platform.
His tweet on Monday represents the first time the head of a major social media platform has openly endorsed a US political party.
In his Twitter message to “independent-minded voters,” Musk wrote: “Shared power curbs the worst excesses of both parties, so I recommend voting Republican for Congress, Democratic for the presidency.”
President Joe Biden’s Democratic Party faces a tough battle to retain control of Congress in Tuesday’s vote.
Nonpartisan election forecasters and polls suggest Republicans have a strong chance of winning a majority in the House of Representatives, with control of the Senate still closely contested.
“Hardcore Democrats or Republicans will never vote for the other side, so independent voters decide who’s really in charge!”, Musk added in a Twitter post he bought late last month.
Musk has previously said he would vote Republican, but says he supports moderates on both sides of the aisle.
In April, Musk said, “For Twitter to be worthy of public trust, it needs to be politically neutral, meaning it needs to disrupt the far right and the far left equally.”
Musk frequently comments on American politics.
He previously said he was leaning toward endorsing Ron DeSantis, the Republican governor of Florida, for president in 2024, saying former President Donald Trump was too old to serve as president again.
Reporting by Scott Malone, Rami Ayyub, Kenneth Li and Kanishka Singh; Editing by Howard Koller
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