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Anthony Albanese has warned Elon Musk not to intervene in Australia’s upcoming election.
In an interview with Nine Newspapers, the prime minister was asked about the world’s richest man’s propensity to weigh in on international elections.
“We have foreign interference laws in this country and Australian elections are a matter for Australians,” Albanese said.
“I have no intention of being a … commentator on what people overseas want to engage in.
“People will make their own judgments and have their own views about that.”
His comments come as Musk has been using his wealth and influence to promote conservative politicians around the world.
Last month Musk penned an opinion piece published in a German newspaper promoting the country’s far-right AfD party.
“Ony the AfD can save Germany,” he wrote.
Musk has also tied the UK’s Labour Party to so-called “rape gangs” in dozens of posts on X, formerly Twitter.
The South African-born tech mogul called for UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer to be imprisoned over allegations he didn’t do enough in his previous role as a top prosecutor.
It’s estimated Musk spent more than a quarter of a billion dollars to get Donald Trump elected.
But Monash University’s head of politics Zareh Ghazarian was sceptical of Musk’s influence in Australia.
“In the US, parties spend a lot of time trying to tap into communities who have specific concerns and they try and rally those in order for those voters to come out and vote,” Ghazarian told 9News.com.au.
“In Australia because of compulsory voting, parties don’t really need to do that.”
Ghazarian was sure Musk would weigh in on the debate in Australia.
“In terms of what direct impact he may have, I’m not so sure it will be significant,” he said.
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