BERLIN: Germany’s government said Monday that US billionaire tech baron Elon Musk is trying to sway February elections by praising the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD), a move strongly rejected by major political parties.
Musk — a key supporter of US President-elect Donald Trump, and his incoming “efficiency czar” — posted on his social media platform X this month that “only the AfD can save Germany”.
Only the AfD can save Germany https://t.co/Afu0ea1Fvt
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) December 20, 2024
He then doubled down on the claim with an opinion piece in a German Sunday newspaper.
On Monday, German government spokeswoman Christiane Hoffmann said that “it is a fact that Elon Musk is trying to exert influence on the parliamentary election”.
In Germany, elections are decided by voters at the ballot box,” the German government spokeswoman told a regular press conference, adding that the country’s “elections are a matter for Germans”.
The support of the AfD from Musk comes as Germans are set to vote on February 23 after a coalition government led by Chancellor Olaf Scholz collapsed.
Musk was free to express his opinion, the spokesperson added. “After all, freedom of opinion also covers the greatest nonsense.”
Ms Hoffmann also pointed out that the AfD is being monitored by Germany’s domestic intelligence service on suspicion of being right-wing extremist and that it has already been recognised as such in some individual German states.
Lars Klingbeil, co-leader of Scholz’s Social Democrats (SPD), told the Funke media group that Musk “is trying the same thing as Vladimir Putin”, the Russian president.
“They both want to influence our elections and support the AfD, which is hostile to democracy,” he said, accusing both Musk and Putin of “wanting Germany to be weakened and pushed into chaos”.
Klingbeil said more action was needed on the European level to restrict the political power of big social media platforms such as X.
Musk has repeatedly used X to attack Scholz personally, most recently in the wake of a deadly car-ramming attack on a Christmas market in the eastern city of Magdeburg on December 20.
Musk called Scholz an “incompetent fool” and said he “should resign immediately”.
Olaf ist ein Narr https://t.co/Yye3DIeA17
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) November 7, 2024
Musk’s interventions in German politics have also been criticised by Scholz’s main rival, the leader of the conservative opposition CDU/CSU, Friedrich Merz.
Merz labelled Musk’s AfD endorsement as “interfering and presumptuous” and said he could not remember “a comparable case of meddling in the election campaign of an allied country in the history of Western democracy”.
This is a broken system https://t.co/EcjmqIO0ce
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) December 20, 2024
The AfD is in second place in the latest polls at 19 percent, behind the CDU/CSU opposition, which is at 32 percent.
The SPD is headed for its worst-ever result at 16 percent while its Green coalition partners are polling at 13 percent.
Mr Musk’s guest opinion piece for Welt am Sonntag, published in German over the weekend, was the second time this month he had supported AfD.
“The Alternative for Germany (AfD) is the last spark of hope for this country,” Mr Musk wrote in his translated commentary.
He went on to say the far-right party “can lead the country into a future where economic prosperity, cultural integrity and technological innovation are not just wishes, but reality”.
The Tesla Motors chief executive also wrote that his investment in Germany gave him the right to comment on the country’s condition.
The AfD is polling strongly, but its candidate for the top job, Alice Weidel, has no realistic chance of becoming chancellor because other parties refuse to work with the far-right party.
An ally of US President-elect Donald Trump, the technology billionaire challenged in his opinion piece the party’s public image.
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Mr Musk’s commentary has led to a debate in German media over the boundaries of free speech, with the paper’s own opinion editor announcing her resignation, pointedly on Mr Musk’s social media platform, X.
“I always enjoyed leading the opinion section of WELT and WAMS. Today an article by Elon Musk appeared in Welt am Sonntag. I handed in my resignation yesterday after it went to print,” Eva Marie Kogel wrote.
The newspaper was attacked by politicians and other media for offering Mr Musk, a foreigner, a platform.
