Elon Musk’s plans to close out Donald Trump’s election campaign with a virtual town hall on X ended in chaos when the event had to be canceled due to persistent technical issues. Scheduled to begin at 8 p.m. ET, the stream was delayed by over 20 minutes. Despite Musk promoting his upcoming interview with Joe Rogan and inviting audience questions, the audio failed when the operator attempted to connect listeners.
Musk’s Optimism Quickly Derailed
When asked if he believed Trump would win the election, Musk expressed confidence, saying, “Well, I think if people vote tomorrow, we’re definitely going to win.” However, the event was soon abandoned after technical glitches continued to plague the stream. Musk quickly announced, “Let’s cancel this, since we seem to be having some technical issues.”
Follow-Up Stream Also Fails
After canceling the town hall, Musk attempted to salvage the situation by launching an X Spaces stream. That, too, flopped after a full minute of silence. Musk then pivoted to discuss unrelated topics, including a viral story about a euthanized squirrel, and redirected followers to his earlier interview with Rogan, where the podcaster had endorsed Trump.
Recurrent Technical Issues Spark Online Criticism
This isn’t Musk’s first brush with technical mishaps during election-related events on X. In August, a similar issue delayed an interview with Trump by 40 minutes, with some speculating that it was a result of a cyberattack, while others attributed it to user overload. A glitch-riddled launch of Ron DeSantis’ campaign on the platform last year also saw a 25-minute delay. These ongoing failures raise questions about Musk’s ability to manage tech infrastructure, even as he pushes X as a platform for political engagement.
Netizens React to Musk’s ‘Govt Efficiency’ Promise
The repeated technical failures led many to question how Musk, who has positioned himself as a champion of “government efficiency,” can handle such issues. One user tweeted, “He can’t even organise a group call despite being the owner of one of the biggest social networks and multiple technology companies in the world.” Another added, “Oh, the irony. I thought he was a tech genius.”
These glitches underscore the technical challenges X faces under Musk’s leadership, despite his vision to make the platform central to political discourse.
