Elon Musk attacked French presidential candidate Marine Tondelier, the leader of the Green party, after she stated that French authorities should be allowed to suspend social media platform X during election campaigns in cases of foreign interference.
Musk posted on X that he demanded Tondelier be shut down for treason against France, prompting a sharp reaction from the political leader.
Tondelier replied that France does not need lessons in patriotism from a foreign billionaire who believes he has the right to decide which European political leaders should be silenced. She added that democracy is not for sale, even to the richest man in the world, and said she preferred being accused of defending democracy over trying to buy it.
Political Support and Reactions
Musk regularly intervenes in European politics and supports far-right candidates and political parties, according to Politico. In July, Musk described far-right presidential candidate Marine Le Pen as the last hope for France, though her party, National Rally, quickly sought to distance itself from his comments to avoid links with the controversial owner of Tesla and SpaceX.
Far-left presidential candidate Jean-Luc Melenchon also condemned Musk for his attacks against Tondelier. Melenchon accused the French government of failing to take sufficient action to combat foreign interference in domestic politics.
Foreign Interference Concerns
French Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu said days earlier that the government was increasing efforts to identify and punish foreign interference in the upcoming 2027 presidential elections. Presidential candidates Gabriel Attal and Edouard Philippe, along with potential candidate Raphael Glucksmann, stated that they had previously been targeted by Russian disinformation campaigns.
