Elon Musk has been CEO of Twitter for just two months. The entrepreneur, who purchased the social network at the end of October, shared a poll on Sunday asking if he should continue as executive chairman of the company or step down.
The results were clear: 57.5% voted in favor of his resignation, compared to 42.5% who wanted him to continue. There were 17,502,391 users who participated in the poll. The verdict may mark the end of Elon Musk's reign at the helm of the company:
Should I step down as head of Twitter? I will abide by the results of this poll.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) December 18, 2022
"There is no successor"
The billionaire, who was recently surpassed for the title of richest man on the planet, made it clear in the poll tweet that the results would be decisive. What he has not yet revealed is who will take over as CEO:
No one wants the job who can actually keep Twitter alive. There is no successor.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) December 19, 2022
Privacy policy, a reason for Musk to step down?
The vote began on the same day that Twitter's privacy policy was updated without notice. The new rules prevented the creation of accounts intending to advertize other social networks such as Instagram, Mastodon or Facebook, as well as tweets that included links or usernames of Twitter's direct competitors. However, the new policy did not go over well with users, forcing Musk to apologize and retract the update:
Going forward, there will be a vote for major policy changes. My apologies. Won’t happen again.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) December 18, 2022
Seeking new investors
It was also recently revealed that Musk is seeking new investors for Twitter. According to the The Wall Street Journal, the businessman is selling shares of the social network for the same price he bought them: $54.20 per share.
In addition, Semafor gained access to an email sent by Musk's financial manager, Jared Birchall, to investors, in which the sale of Twitter shares was confirmed: "Over recent weeks we’ve received numerous inbound requests to invest in Twitter. Accordingly, we are pleased to announce a follow-on equity offering for common shares at the original price and terms, targeting a year-end close," the email reads.
The privacy policy could be the last straw for Musk, who has made several unsuccessful changes in his time as CEO. one example was the suspension of certain journalists who he accused of doxing. These accounts were reinstated a few days later. Separate problems stemmed from the launch of Musk's Twitter Blue, including a wave of impersonation accounts. These, along with the ongoing crisis at Tesla, could be the reasons why Elon Musk, after two months, plans to step aside from his role at Twitter and hand over the reins to someone new.