For Canadian eyes only

With thanks to Charlie Angus MP

Pplease read carefully Charlie’s letter to Elections Canada sent on January 23, 2025 concerning potential foreign influence on the next Canaan Federal Election. If you are concerned about this matter I invite you to take your own action; details follow this letter originally published here.

[Angus text follows]

Stéphane Perrault
Chief Electoral Officer
Elections Canada
Email: Stephane.Perrault@elections.ca

Dear Mr. Perrault,

I am writing to you regarding growing concerns about potential interference in the next federal election by American oligarch Elon Musk and his social media platform X (formerly Twitter), which he owns.

Mr. Musk, the wealthiest individual in the world, has clearly demonstrated his desire to influence global politics. He has formed alliances with right-wing populist leaders, amplified extremist influencers and spread hate disinformation toward marginal groups. In the recent American election, Mr. Musk spent over $390 million to support a myriad of conservative candidates, nearly five times more than the $83 million spent by all Canadian political parties combined in the 2021 federal election, all while using his social media platform to amplify his candidates’ political messages. His meddling in foreign affairs has also been criticized by the governments of the United Kingdom, Norway, Germany, France, and Spain. Questions of overt support for fascist and extremist causes are now being directly linked to Mr. Musk.

Recently, Mr. Musk turned his attention to Canadian political affairs, praising the current leader of the Conservative Party, aligning himself with Canadian far-right influencers and their platforms, and criticizing the current Prime Minister.

We have already seen how the platform X serves as a pathway for Russian misinformation and the rise of hate and threats in Canada. Given X’s huge power, any overt efforts by Mr. Musk to support a particular party or leader could easily impact our electoral integrity.

The lack of content moderation on X, the ease of spreading disinformation, and the threat of foreign interference create substantial and serious concerns. His interest in influencing the outcome of elections raises the stakes substantially.

That is why I am asking you to launch an immediate investigation into X and possible avenues for manipulation by Mr. Musk or right-wing influencers. I am asking that Elections Canada insist that during the coming federal election, Mr. Musk commit to algorithmic transparency so that election observers can see whether his platform is interfering with the promotion or suppression of political content.

Elections Canada should utilize all available resources to safeguard our electoral process. The question is, do you have the regulatory means to ensure compliance if Mr. Musk decides to ignore Canadian electoral law? Are there steps you can and are ready to take if he openly interferes during the writ period? If alarm bells are raised, it will not be good enough to try and adjudicate a solution after the votes have been tallied.

Our electoral system works because outside interference and undue political influence are prohibited. There are clear transparency rules and spending caps for political advertising. Foreign and corporate money is not allowed to tip the scales. Foreign oligarchs and their media platforms cannot be allowed to ignore Canadian law. This is a fundamental question of the integrity of the democratic process.

Canadian election laws have been developed over many years to create a fair, open, and democratic process. Mr. Musk threatens to destabilize that balance. Therefore, I urge you to treat this issue with the seriousness it requires. I appreciate your attention on this matter.

Respectfully,

Charlie Angus,
Member of Parliament Timmins – James Bay

[KJG] TAKE ACTION
Send your own email or letter to

Stéphane Perrault
Chief Electoral Officer
Elections Canada
30 Victoria Street
Gatineau, QC K1A 0M6
Email: Stephane.Perrault@elections.ca

• I simply sent Charlie’s letter and included the text in bold above. I also copied my own MP (party in this case does matter — the issue affects everyone).
• I have encouraged a few others to do the same and have indicated on Charlie’s FB feed my support and action.

Together we can do this. Time is of the essence.

KJG