Musk backs Republicans ahead of midterms

Elon Musk waded into uncharted political waters when he urged “independent-minded voters” to cast their ballots for Republicans in the 2022 midterm elections, making the kind of explicit endorsement his fellow tech CEOs have avoided in the past. “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. The tweet garnered over 43,000 retweets and over 279,000 likes after it was posted. With Musk promising a more hands-off approach to content moderation on Twitter and then placing himself in the middle of the debate, progressives worry he’ll usher in an era of misinformation even as Republicans remain wary of the apparent endorsement. “Usually tech CEOs try to play both sides,” said Yosef Getachew, the media and democracy program director at the progressive advocacy group Common Cause. “It’s not clear where his motives are with this.” Some progressive groups said the move raised red flags, given how much power Musk has as the sole owner of Washington’s favorite platform. Ultimately, Eric Wilson, managing partner at Republican campaign investment fund Startup Caucus, said he didn’t think the tweets would have much impact on the election, given that many voters have already made up their minds based on other issues long debated in the public sphere.