The conspiracy theory that Elon Musk stole the election using Starlink is everywhere
Starlink did not respond to a request for comment.
This conspiracy theory continues to spread and is not limited to X: Reddit discussion threads, Instagram posts and Threads, and dozens of Facebook posts all push the story that Musk colluded with Trump to use his Starlink satellite to steal the election.
One of the most active platforms for these conspiracy theories is TikTok. WIRED reviewed dozens of videos posted by users on the platform that either repeated claims about Musk and Starlink or added new details to the conspiracy theory.
X, Meta, Reddit and TikTok did not respond to requests for comment.
One of the most popular new aspects of this theory concerns the fact that Starlink satellites are was observed burning in the US last weekend, which conspiracy theorists say is evidence that Musk is trying to cover his tracks. the reality are Starlink satellites designed to burn up on re-entry at the end of their life.
The conspiracy theory has eerily similar aspects to the so-called Italygate conspiracy fueled by the Trump campaign after the 2020 election, which showed that an Italian military satellite was used to switch votes from Trump to President Joe Biden.
“It’s very disturbing to see it solidify and crystallize into specific narratives, and then see content added — which is what we saw last time,” Thomas said. “You see this kind of collective storytelling happening in these communities, where people who are trying to gain influence online by promoting a new version of a conspiracy theory, they all have to add parts put your child in there to attract their participation. .”
Other conspiracy theorists suggested that Trump was talking about “a little secret” he made on stage with Musk, referencing remarks he made during a Madison Square Garden rally in November. before. Actually, that comment was targeting House Speaker Mike Johnson. Several left-leaning accounts have also pointed to the podcaster Joe Rogan’s commentary this week that Musk had developed a private app to give him early access to election results.
“Apparently Elon created an app and he knew who won the election four hours before the results came in,” Rogan said. “So when the results came in, four hours before they announced it, Dana White told me that Elon said, ‘I’m leaving. It’s over. Donald won.’” It’s unclear how the app works or what data it uses.
Jen Easterly, director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency that oversees US elections, said in announced on November 6 that “there is no evidence of any malicious activity that had a significant impact on the security or integrity of our election infrastructure.”
While some right-wing figures are continuing to push election conspiracy theories, the vast majority have gone silent after Trump’s victory, abandoning four years of nonstop posting and screaming about fraud elector.
And while the left’s election plots haven’t reached the scale of the Stop the Steal movement just a few weeks ago, some experts are still concerned.
“I’ve seen some comparisons to Stop the Steal and some other right-wing election conspiracy theories, and it’s smaller than those, like at the end of Trump’s presidency,” Thomas said. “But I think the significant difference is that they come after months, if not years, of deliberate agitation and cultivation by many different actors. So for me, to see these left-wing election fraud conspiracy theories quickly gain quite significant traction, I personally think is quite disturbing.”
