Elon Musk Spreads Conspiracy Theory That ‘220,730 Illegal Immigrants’ Registered To Vote In Arizona To Followers, Gets Fact Checked As ‘0 Validity’ By Election Official

On Thursday, Elon Musk reposted a false claim suggesting over 220,730 illegal immigrants had registered to vote in Arizona. Musk’s comment on the post was “Extremely concerning.”

Musk spread false information to his 180 million X followers without fact-checking its accuracy. 

Maricopa County, Arizona, Recorder Stephen Richer, a Republican, dismantled the claim Musk reposted and pointed out, “Only 39,653 new voters have registered in Maricopa County in 2024 in total. For Arizona, that number is about 60,000…In Arizona, since October 1, 1996, drivers have had to provide proof of citizenship for driver’s licenses (except Type F). We use this data to confirm citizenship for the vast majority of registration applicants. We also have some other tools at our disposal, or we communicate directly with the voter to get documentation…If the voter cannot provide documented proof of citizenship, but still attests under penalty of law that he is a citizen, he goes on what is called the ‘Federal Only’ list in Arizona.”

Maricopa is the largest county in Arizona.

Richer declared, “There is 0 validity to the suggestion in the original post that 220,731 illegal immigrants have registered in Arizona in 2024. Hope this helps. We loved the recent rocket launch that we could see in the Arizona sky. Thanks for all the cool, sciencey stuff you continue to do.” 

Musk has a history of spreading conspiracy theories on social media..

Musk himself stated, “I’ll say what I want to say, and if the consequence of that is losing money, so be it.”

In the past, he has promoted posts supporting the “great replacement theory” that alleges a conspiracy by Jews and “leftists” to replace the white population with non-white immigrants.

The White House, along with many others, condemned Musk for his promotion of “racist” and “antisemitic” ideas. 

The acquisition of Twitter, now known as X, provided Musk with an unchecked platform to spread conspiracy theories to his millions of followers. 

Musk recently sued a research organization that found a massive rise in hate speech on the platform. Last week, a judge dismissed the suit as “vapid” and “without merit.” 

Musk’s erratic behavior has led some of his board members to question whether his alleged drug use is to blame.