Elon Musk's political influence shakes the European Union

Elon Musk, the well-known billionaire and close associate of Donald Trump, is causing controversy in Europe. His actions on the X platform, formerly known as Twitter, are perceived as support for right-wing political forces. According to "Politico", Musk may influence the upcoming presidential elections in Poland.

Recently, Musk expressed support for the Alternative for Germany (AfD), a far-right party in Germany. Ahead of the parliamentary elections in the country, which will take place on 23 February, he plans to interview the AfD leader, Alice Weidel. Musk has also criticised German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, labelling him an "incompetent fool".

Musk is not confining his attention to Germany alone. He has also criticised the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Keir Starmer, urging King Charles III to dissolve parliament and call early elections.

"Politico" highlights that Musk could have an impact on numerous elections across Europe, including those in Poland, Romania, the Czech Republic, Ireland, and other countries.

The European Union has the option to respond to Musk's actions through the Digital Services Act (DSA).

The European Commission has previously identified that the X platform violated DSA regulations, including user verification and ad transparency. Felix Kartte from the lobbying group Reset notes that the DSA provides regulators with the capacity to evaluate practices on the X platform.

Kartte emphasises that if Musk's actions pose a public risk, such as promoting hate speech, regulators could claim that the X platform is not meeting its obligations.

"Politico" suggests that although the European Union could utilise the DSA against Musk, the current priority seems to be collaboration with the Trump administration.