On Saturday night, Twitter CEO Elon Musk made the decision to unban former President Donald Trump from Twitter.
The decision came after Musk started a poll on Friday night asking users if Twitter should reinstate Trump.
The poll, which received over 15 million votes, 134 million views, and 780,000 likes, led to Musk unbanning the former President after 51.8% of users voted in favor of reinstating his account.
Reinstate former President Trump
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) November 19, 2022
Just minutes after people noticed that Trump’s account was reinstated on Twitter, Musk made a succinct Twitter post explaining the decision. “Vox Populi, Vox Dei,” he said. The phrase is Latin for  “The voice of the people is the voice of God.”
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The people have spoken.
Trump will be reinstated.
Vox Populi, Vox Dei. https://t.co/jmkhFuyfkv
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) November 20, 2022
Within minutes, Musk’s decision to unban Trump was the talk of Twitter. Users on both sides of the issue weighed in, with conservatives saying it was a victory for free speech on the platform while liberals decried Trump’s reinstatement as dangerous and a threat to Democracy. “Twitter is ALIVE,” Musk said.
Twitter is ALIVE
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) November 20, 2022
Musk, who has engaged with users who have suggestions for the platform since he purchased it earlier this year, agreed to reinstate all of Trump’s Twitter followers after one user suggested it.
He should be restored with all of his previous followers intact. Please fix that. If you don’t have the data in the current database just pull it from a backup when his account was still live.
— Kim Dotcom (@KimDotcom) November 20, 2022
Another user shared a meme mocking the inevitable backlash by liberal Twitter users who have railed against Trump being reinstated ever since Musk purchased the platform and promised to expand free speech protections.
— john (@johnhackerla) November 20, 2022
Another prominent Twitter user mocked liberals who believe that Trump and other conservatives are a threat to Democracy, saying, “This is your Democracy, libs.” after nearly 8 million Twitter users voted to unban Trump.
This is your Democracy, libs.
— The Redheaded libertarian (@TRHLofficial) November 20, 2022
Other users threatened to leave Twitter due to Trump’s reinstatement, with one saying that Musk is the “worst owner [Of Twitter] in history”
That seals the deal. I am no longer a twitter fan. I’ve been a fan since 2014 and a twitter blue subscriber since last week. I officially will not be renewing my plan next cycle nor will I use the app ever again. Musk is officially the worst owner in history
— Alex Schroeder (@AlexS1898) November 20, 2022
Prominent feminist activist Brianna Wu claimed that Musk’s reputation was “intertwined” with Trump’s because he chose to unban him, saying that she did not believe his reputation could “sink any lower.”
I didn’t think your reputation could sink any lower, but now that it’s now intertwined with Trump – it’s going to.
— Brianna Wu (@BriannaWu) November 20, 2022
Jonathan Greenblatt, the CEO of the American Defamation League, or ADL, said that Musk’s decision is a “dangerous” and “a threat to democracy.” The ADL is one of a few pressure groups that have attempted to get advertisers to pull out of Twitter unless Musk commits to censoring views that they believe are dangerous on the platform.
.@elonmusk's decisions over the last month have been erratic and alarming, but this decision is dangerous and a threat to American democracy. We need to ask — is it time for Twitter to go?
— Jonathan Greenblatt (@JGreenblattADL) November 20, 2022
One of the key reforms that Musk has repeatedly advocated since he floated the idea of purchasing Twitter earlier this year was to expand free speech protections on the social media giant.
Already, Musk has unbanned multiple high-profile conservative accounts, such as the Babylon Bee and Jordan Peterson.
Trump’s account was removed from the platform in the aftermath of the January 6th ‘Stop the Steal’ rally.
Trump has repeatedly stated that he would not return to the platform as he looks to promote his alternative to Twitter, Truth Social.
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