Musk says UK’s Farage should not be Reform party leader

Tech billionaire Elon Musk said Sunday that British politician Nigel Farage should not be the Reform U.K. party’s leader.

“The Reform Party needs a new leader,” Musk said in a post on the social platform X, which he owns. “Farage doesn’t have what it takes.”

Musk has recently been posting on social media about U.K. politics, calling for the release of far-right activist Tommy Robinson. Robinson is a founder of the far-right English Defense League who was sentenced late last year to a year and a half in prison due to violating a court order prohibiting him from repeating libelous allegations toward a Syrian refugee.

Farage later responded to Musk’s post with an X post of his own, stating that it was “a surprise.”

“Well, this is a surprise! Elon is a remarkable individual but on this I am afraid I disagree. My view remains that Tommy Robinson is not right for Reform and I never sell out my principles,” Farage said.

Farage also said in a recent clip from Sky News that when it comes to Reform U.K., he doesn’t wish for Robinson to be a member.

In a post from earlier this week, Musk had said “only” Farage’s party “can save Britain.”

Musk has also recently been going after the U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer on social media. He criticized the prime minister’s history as Britain’s director of public prosecutions, noting grooming scandals in the country unveiled in 2013.

“In the UK, serious crimes such as rape require the Crown Prosecution Service’s [CPS] approval for the police to charge suspects. Who was the head of the CPS when rape gangs were allowed to exploit young girls without facing justice? Keir Starmer, 2008-2013,” Musk wrote on X.

The Hill has reached out to Robinson’s account on X for comment.

When reached for comment, a Reform U.K. spokesperson directed The Hill to Farage’s response to Musk’s original post.

— Updated Jan. 7 at 4:57 p.m.