Can Europe resist the new techno oligarchy?
06 January 2025
The world's richest man, Elon Musk, keeps making headlines for endorsing far-right European parties. But what might otherwise look like the ravings of a madman may actually be election interference by a foreign oligarch. Musk arguably just bought the US election for Donald Trump – he spent at least a quarter billion in support of Trump's campaign – and in return, he was given an honorary leading role, and a place by the President's side.
Now, Musk has his eyes set on Europe. On his social media platform X, Musk wrote, "Only the AfD can save Germany", and followed up with an op-ed in the German newspaper Welt. (The paper's decision to print the piece was met with the opinion editor's resignation.)
Next, he plans to host a talk with the far-right party leader. Germany's Chancellor alluded to Musk's alt-right endorsement in his New Year's Eve address, urging voters not to be influenced by "owners of social media channels."
In the UK, he has endorsed the Reform party and has spoken with party leader Nigel Farage about donating millions to their campaign. UK law forbids a foreign individual from donating to political campaigns, but Musk reportedly already has a stake in UK-based companies through which he could funnel the funds.
 | Paul Krantz We may find out just how much influence Musk has quite soon, as Germany will hold a federal election on 23 February. But in the meantime, you may be wondering why the man who made a fortune popularising electric vehicles is now endorsing parties that deny the climate crisis. The most likely answer is that he thinks there is more money to be made. Musk's net worth doubled following Trump's victory in the US, and in his new position, he may be able to gut many of the regulatory agencies that have taken on his companies like Tesla and SpaceX. Considering the Tesla factory in Germany, for example, he could see the AfD as an ally that would let him ignore Germany's labour laws or environmental regulations. It's also worth noting that both the AfD and Reform are eurosceptic parties, and EU regulators recently came after X for breaching the Digital Services Act. Musk criticised the European Commission himself, calling it "undemocratic." For their part, researchers from the European Council on Foreign Relations have previously warned that Musk could use X "to mobilise citizens and far-right parties…" |
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