Billionaire Elon Musk's mother urged Americans to vote 100 times using "fake names," and falsely claimed "it's not illegal" before walking back the bad advice — without removing it from the internet.
In a message on her son's social media site X, Maye Musk reposted a message in which Elon Musk said, "Super important to get all your friends and family to register to vote."
She then noted in her own post Saturday: "The Democrats have given us another option. You don't have to register to vote. On Election Day, have 10 fake names, go to 10 polling booths and vote 10 times. That's 100 votes, and it's not illegal."
A "community note" attached to the post warned readers, "This is, in fact, illegal."
The Democrats have given us another option. You don't have to register to vote. On Election Day, have 10 fake names, go to 10 polling booths and vote 10 times. That's 100 votes, and it's not illegal. Maybe we should work the system too. https://t.co/GZ5DlaoFPs
— Maye Musk (@mayemusk) October 5, 2024
Under the U.S. Code, voting more than once in a federal election is a felony punishable by up to five years in prison and a maximum $10,000 fine.
It's unclear if Musk has ever voted, given how easy she imagines it would be to vote in an American election using ten fake names. (Musk says she became an American citizen after an extraordinary amount of paperwork that was "madness.")
A poll worker tweeted that her scheme was not only illegal, but it "won't work," adding: "You can't just show up and vote" without being registered, with identification, within the qualification deadline.
Maye Musk posted her message hours before Elon Musk appeared onstage with former President Donald Trump during a campaign rally at the same site in Pennsylvania where Trump's ear was shot during a July 13 assassination attempt.
Maye Musk — a 76-year-old model, dietician and author with 1.1 million X followers — retracted her comments three hours after making them but didn't delete the message.
"In Butler, Pennsylvania, we just heard that the Republicans will make sure no illegals vote. Ignore my previous post," she wrote.
Some X users were highly critical, with one telling Maye Musk, "Go for it. I dare you. Lol," and posting a photo of former Mesa County, Arizona, county clerk Tina Peters, who was sentenced last week to nine years behind bars for giving a fellow 2020 election denier access to the local voting system.
Another urged, "Someone charge this woman with incitement," while a third wrote, "Great idea, Maye. I think you should film yourself doing this and post it."
