European Central: Elon Musk’s Flirtations With The European Far-Right
Omer Messinger
‘I would prefer to stay out of politics,’ Elon Musk, the wealthiest person in the world, posted to X (formerly Twitter) in 2021. Much has changed since then. Not only does Musk now own X, he has become increasingly active in political debates on both sides of the Atlantic. Musk spent $250 million helping to reelect Donald Trump as president of the United States, and was subsequently rewarded with the unofficial position of administrator of the Department of Government Efficiency in the new Trump administration, as well as a prime seat in the inauguration. In the months since the election, Musk has seemingly taken on a new mission: upending the political order in Europe, one government at a time. ‘From MAGA to MEGA: Make Europe Great Again!’, he posted on January 18, 2025.
European leaders have accused Musk, who has American, Canadian, and South African citizenship, of meddling in their affairs and promoting extreme figures and political parties which pose a threat to the liberal democratic order. Musk has waged a particularly aggressive and personal online campaign against Britain’s Labour government, with some in Britain blaming him personally for fomenting a wave of right-wing riots at the end of last summer. Musk has also endorsed the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD), which has been labeled a potential threat to the democratic order by Germany’s Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution, ahead of the federal election in the country at the end of February.
However, Musk’s wealth, control of X, and close partnership with President Trump make him a difficult figure to contend with. Politicians in Europe are thus faced with two crucial questions: Why is Musk interested in European politics? What, if anything, can be done about it?
There are several hypotheses as to why Musk is targeting Europe. One is personal. Musk has particularly bitter relationships with several European leaders, including German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, although he has forged close ties with others, such as Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni. Or it could be financial. Musk has been a frequent critic of regulation in Europe’s technology sector. He also has business interests, such as Tesla factories, which operate within the European Union and have been the subject of controversy in the past.
Musk is still some ways from exerting as much influence over European politics as he has over American politics. Musk’s interventions can be fickle. He is focused primarily on Britain and Germany, two countries governed by unpopular center-left governments headed by technocratic leaders (Starmer in the UK and Scholz in Germany). However, he has largely ignored France and its right-wing populist party, National Rally, led by Marine Le Pen. He also has not taken much interest in Austria, where a far-right government will likely be installed for the first time since 1945. Musk has also had a public falling-out with Reform UK leader Nigel Farage, who had been expecting a large injection of cash into his party’s coffers from Musk.
Moreover, both the European Union and national governments across the continent have demonstrated a willingness to challenge Musk. A significant fine, potentially 6% of X’s global annual turnover, is pending upon the completion of an EU investigation into whether ‘X broke rules put in place by the sweeping Digital Services Act, which regulates how the tech industry handles misinformation and illegal content on social media, as well as illegal goods and services on online marketplaces.’ In the UK, Musk has been invited to testify before the parliamentary Science, Innovation and Technology Select Committee regarding X’s algorithm, after it was blamed for ‘promoting misinformation about a tragic stabbing of children last summer that resulted in rioters clashing with police and setting hotels housing asylum seekers on fire.’
Musk’s visibility on social media and his frequent appearances alongside far-right politicians could ironically be the very factor that leads to his downfall in Europe. According to survey data from YouGov, 71% of respondents in both Britain and Germany hold a negative view of Elon Musk. This is compared with just 19% with a favorable view in Germany and 18% with a favorable view in Britain. Additionally, 74% of Germans and 76% of Britons say that it is unacceptable for any American political figure, including Musk, to interfere in domestic European affairs. Crucially, this data was collected before Elon Musk’s apparent Nazi salute at President Trump’s inaugural celebration and his appearance at an AfD party conference.
At the AfD gathering, held on January 25, Musk told attendees that there is ‘too much of a focus on past guilt’ in Germany, seemingly an attempt to dismiss the legacy of the Nazi era, which has influenced generations of Germans to exclude extremist political parties from the public sphere. ‘It’s good to be proud of German culture, German values, and not to lose that in some sort of multiculturalism that dilutes everything,’ Musk said in a brief video broadcast to thousands of AfD supporters in the eastern German city of Halle. ‘We don’t want everything to be the same everywhere where it’s just one big sort of soup,’ Musk said. ‘You know, we want to have something where it’s, you go to different countries and you experience a different culture and it is unique and special and good and — that the German government takes actions to protect its citizens and makes sure that it seeks the health and well-being of the German people.’
His appearance at their conference was one of several attempts to ‘mainstream’ the AfD. He hosted the party’s candidate for chancellor, Alice Weidel, for a live interview on X earlier in January. He has also endorsed the party’s stance on issues ranging from immigration to energy policy as ‘common sense.’ In doing so, he has ‘brushed aside years of flirtations with Nazism and other actions by AfD members that have led Germany’s mainstream political parties to unite in opposition to working with the organization.’
The backlash within Germany has, predictably, been swift and forceful. Chancellor Olaf Scholz responded by branding Musk’s support for the AfD and his interventions in European politics as ‘really disgusting’ and ‘not good for the democratic development in all the European Union.’ Musk’s address to the AfD came just two days before International Holocaust Remembrance Day. ‘I am absolutely critical about what Elon Musk said about the history of Germany,’ Scholz added. ‘This killing of so many Jews and other people in Europe done by Germans in the past, this is a historic responsibility.’
While it remains to be seen whether Musk’s latest controversies and foray into German politics will further damage his approval ratings in Germany and across Europe, they are highly unlikely to improve his standing with most Europeans. Therefore, European leaders can count on public support if they decide to escalate their dispute with Elon Musk.