Elon Musk, the renowned CEO and founder of Tesla, SpaceX, and Starlink, recently advocated for significant voting reform prior to the upcoming 2024 election in a series of tweets that gained considerable support. Musk emphasized the need to eliminate electronic voting machines due to their susceptibility to hacking by humans or AI. His call for action followed a post from independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr., highlighting recent issues with electronic voting machines in Puerto Rico, which led to hundreds of reported irregularities during the primary elections.
Kennedy’s statement outlined that there was a paper trail involved, allowing the problem to be identified and vote tallies to be corrected. However, he argued that US citizens need to know their votes are counted accurately and that their elections cannot be hacked, necessitating a return to paper ballots to avoid electronic interference with elections. Kennedy’s administration would require paper ballots and guarantee honest and fair elections.
Former President Donald Trump and his legal team were highly suspicious of electronic voting machines following the 2020 election loss. They filed numerous lawsuits in various federal and state courts, making several allegations but ultimately failing to secure any victories. Others argued that voting rules changed by secretaries of state or governors in battleground states were unconstitutional because they were not altered by the respective state legislatures.
The X account KanekoaTheGreat posted a 20-minute supercut of corrupt Democrats, who over the years have made claims about electronic voting machines that are similar to Trump’s concerns: the spread of malware, problematic programming practices, and outdated systems. The account pointed out that hackers could potentially infiltrate elections through vulnerable USB cards, election management systems, and voting machines themselves, emphasizing the urgent need for securing America’s election infrastructure.
As Trump secures the GOP presidential nomination, he will have to choose a running mate, with the decision being even more crucial this time around. Unlike in 2016, Trump can pretty much choose whoever he wants (within reason), as there is no significant bloc of intraparty opposition that he must appease the way conservative evangelicals needed to be placated with Mike Pence. The former president has made several comments about potential running mates, but he has yet to announce his decision, which is expected ahead of the Republican National Convention next month.
