Elon Musk has publicly endorsed Donald Trump for the first time in the US presidential race.
This was shortly after the US presidential aspirant appeared to have been the target of an assassination attempt while speaking at a rally in Pennsylvania on Saturday, July 13.
“I fully endorse President Trump and hope for his rapid recovery,” the X owner declared on his platform, in a recent surprising shift in his political views.
Elon Musk likened Trump to Theodore Roosevelt, who before becoming president, put together the First US Voluntary Cavalry Regiment, also known as the Rough Riders, at the start of the Spanish-American War.
In the post, the billionaire CEO of Tesla and SpaceX referred to Trump as “tough” and expressed hope for his quick recovery after shots were fired at the rally.
His endorsement was accompanied by a tweet and a video of Trump at a rally.
“Last time America had a candidate this tough was Theodore Roosevelt.” his immediate post on X read.
This marks a significant change for Musk, who has previously supported Democratic candidates but has shifted towards right-wing views in recent years and become a vocal critic of certain Democratic policies.
The Billionaire has previously supported Democratic candidates but has gradually shifted towards right-wing views and has become a vocal critic of certain Democratic policies.
This follows Musk’s recent criticisms of President Joe Biden and Bloomberg having recently reported that Musk had allegedly donated to a political group working to elect Trump, after initially saying he would remain neutral.
“I voted 100% Dem until a few years ago. Now, I think we need a red wave or America is toast,” Musk wrote in a previous post on X.
Musk’s endorsement could potentially benefit Trump, given his large following on social media.
X, formerly Twitter, had previously suspended Trump from its platform in 2021 before new owner Elon Musk reinstated it after running a poll in which users narrowly backed the move.
“The people have spoken,” tweeted Musk, after 51.8% of more than 15 million X users voted for the ban to be lifted.
Meta recently lifted restrictions imposed on Donald Trump’s Facebook and Instagram accounts, following the January 6 attack on the Capitol.
“In assessing our responsibility to allow political expression, we believe that the American people should be able to hear from the nominees for President on the same basis,” Nick Clegg, Meta’s president of global affairs wrote in a statement posted to the company’s website Friday, July 11.
This now evens the playing field for Trump ahead of being announced as a presidential candidate in the Republican National Conventions which starts on Monday.
On Facebook, Trump’s posts are largely videos and images with slogans and simple messages aimed at building Traffic rather than deep engagement.
Former President Donald Trump launched his own social media platform, Truth Social, in early 2022, after the bans and restrictions from mainstream social media sites.
As much as Trump’s suspension was lifted by Musk, the former US President has shied away from what was once his go-to platform.
Trump’s last post on X was on August 25, 2023, while the former US President’s site Truth Social, after a slow start, has slowly gained traction, especially among his supporters.
Meanwhile, X has been accused by the European Union of breaching its online content rules and not complying with the Digital Services Act.
The EU claims the verified “blue tick” accounts could potentially deceive users as anyone can pay for a blue tick.
