Conspiracy Theorists Accuse Elon Musk of Using Starlink Satellites to Steal Election
A recent conspiracy theory from the left’s “BlueAnon” movement alleges that Elon Musk used Starlink satellites to rig the 2024 U.S. presidential election in favor of Donald Trump. This theory has gained traction on social media, particularly through a viral TikTok video where a user claimed that an engineer friend informed her that Starlink could manipulate ballot counts because voting machines are connected to the internet. Despite the video’s removal, it continues to circulate online.
Fact-checking by the Associated Press and various election officials have thoroughly debunked these claims. They affirm that voting equipment is not connected to the internet, and therefore, it cannot be hacked or influenced by Starlink or any other satellite system. David Becker, from the Center for Election Innovation and Research, stated that thanks to robust security measures, the conspiracy theories are unfounded and echo disinformation from previous years.
Georgia’s Secretary of State representative labeled the claims as “conspiratorial nonsense,” asserting that the state does not use Starlink technology in its elections. Additionally, while Starlink provided internet services at some polling locations for check-in, it was not involved in vote counting.
Experts and officials emphasize that physical evidence from elections makes it impossible for any satellite system to alter results, rejecting the absurdity of the claims.
One of the latest conspiracy theories of the left’s “BlueAnon” movement asserts that Elon Musk rigged the 2024 election using Starlink satellites.
The theory claims that Starlink, a satellite internet company founded by Musk, manipulated swing-state votes in favor of President-elect Donald Trump.
The outlandish assertion has gained wide traction in leftist social media circles.
One TikTok video in particular has gained viral status.
In a 9-minute segment, user Etheria77 claimed she heard from an “engineer” friend that Starlink was able to pull off this supposed fraud because the ballot tabulators are “connected to the internet.”
Although the video has since been removed from TikTok, it has continued to make its way around the internet.
She describes the tech side in basic terminology.
See her channel here: https://t.co/4wbTfNeN8s pic.twitter.com/8OhpJRzXaR
— Ashley Fox (@AFoxTweets) November 10, 2024
A 9-minute TikTok video by the account @etheria77 states,”California & other swing states were able to use Starlink in order to tally up & count voting ballots in their state.” The video has been viewed over 1.6 million times as of Sunday morning. @JoeBiden INVESTIGATE THIS.
— Caroline Leavitt (@Leavittnovelist) November 10, 2024
The Associated Press was quick to fact-check and debunk this theory, calling it unfounded.
Election officials reportedly told the AP that their voting equipment isn’t even connected to the internet, much less associated with Starlink.
“It is not possible that Starlink was used to hack or change the outcome of the U.S. presidential election,” said David Becker, founder and executive director of The Center for Election Innovation and Research.
“This, quite simply, did not happen, and could not happen, thanks to the security measures we have in place, and these conspiracy theories echo other disinformation we’ve heard over the past several years.”
Starlink used in election tabulation, a tabulation “glitch” was found before systems went up… pic.twitter.com/wwzy6rfU4i
— CleverMonster ✊🏿🇭🇹🇵🇸 (@CleverMonsterCT) November 12, 2024
Please please see this, Starlink implicated, possibly was connected to voting machineshttps://t.co/MCWNSg4VQ8
— Luzette 🇺🇦 (@LuzetteH) November 10, 2024
Georgia secretary of state representative Mike Hassinger called the claims “absolutely conspiratorial nonsense.”
“We don’t use Starlink equipment for any part of our elections, and never have,” Hassinger said. “Our election equipment is 100 percent air-gapped and never connected to the internet.”
An air-gapped computer or piece of equipment is one that’s incapable of connecting wirelessly or physically with other computers or network devices, according to TechTarget.
Other posts, citing a news story, referenced the use of Starlink at poll sites in Tulare County, California.
One source said in the article regarding poll stations in the county that connectivity to the internet had been improved this year because of Starlink.
But Stephanie Hill, a systems and procedures analyst for Starlink, told AP that the “connection is strictly for voter check-in purposes only and in no way a part of our voting system.”
Pamela Smith, president and CEO of Verified Voting, called the theory absurd.
“While Starlink provided connectivity in a number of jurisdictions for electronic poll books in this election, neither Starlink nor other types of communication networks play any role in counting votes,” Smith told AP in an .
“Our elections produce huge quantities of physical evidence. A satellite system like Starlink cannot steal that,” she said.
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