Elon Musk, Twitter’s new CEO, has kept one of the promises he made before he acquired the social media site for $44 billion: reinstating former President Donald Trump’s Twitter account.
Musk reinstated the former President’s account on Saturday (November 19) evening, after conducting a poll on his Twitter account, which had received just over 15 million votes.
When the poll ended, support for former President Donald Trump returning to the platform stood at 51.8 percent.
After the poll concluded, Musk tweeted “The people have spoken. Trump will be reinstated. Vox Populi, Vox Dei.” The latter part of his tweet is a Latin phrase that means: “The voice of the people is the voice of God.”
Trump’s Twitter account had been permanently suspended 22 months ago, in the wake of January 6, 2021, insurrection. The former President had moved to Truth Social, owned by the Trump Media & Technology Group.
Trump’s social media platform was launched shortly after his suspension on Twitter to give himself and others access to a platform that prioritized freedom of speech.
Trump’s presence on Truth means he may not return to Twitter, as he highlighted in a post after Musk acquired the platform.
Trump explained he would be “staying on Truth,” stating, “I like it better. I like the way it works. I like Elon, but I’m staying on Truth.”
But Trump’s account is waiting for him should he decide to return to Twitter. The former President’s account was reactivated with all his old tweets, follows, and followers intact.
