Top MAGA Influencers Accidentally Unmasked as Foreign Actors

Elon Musk’s social media site

The new “About this account” feature, which became available to

Democratic influencer Harry Sisson wrote, “This is one of the greatest days on this platform.”

“The exposure of all these MAGA accounts as foreign actors trying to destroy the United States is a complete vindication of what I and many people here, like Democrats, have been warning about.”

Dozens of prominent accounts disguised as “America First” or “MAGA” supporters have been identified from places such as Russia, India, and Nigeria.

In one example, the account MAGANationX – with nearly 400,000 followers and a biography titled “Patriot Voice for We the People” – is actually based in Eastern Europe.

Ivanka Trump’s fan account, IvankaNews, has 1 million followers and frequently posts about the dangers of Islam, the threat of illegal immigration and support for Trump. That account is based in Nigeria.

“This is the perfect weapon for the online right,” wrote law student and leftist influencer Mika Irfan. “It looks like half their big accounts were foreigners calling themselves Americans.”

While the account went live on Friday, Nikita Bear, X’s head of product development, said the change had “some rough edges” that they plan to smooth out.

For example, information related to account location can be changed with the use of a VPN, which Bear said the company plans to address.

Users on X reported the tool being removed just hours after going live, with some speculating that exposing the origins of far-right accounts may have had something to do with its removal. However, it appears to have been restored at the time of writing.

The use of fraudulent accounts on social media to generate support for a person or ideology has long been seen online in the US and around the world.

“Think about the number of foreign influence operations that are happening on this app right now,” journalist and MeidasTouch co-founder Brett Meiselas said in a video posted on social media about the changes.

“Think about the lawmakers who feel pressured by accounts like this. Think about the disinformation that spreads as a result of all these accounts.”

The use of fake accounts to promote the MAGA movement was flagged by the Center for Information Resilience, an independent, non-profit research organization, during the 2024 election.

With many of MAGA’s influencer accounts revealed to originate in Eastern Europe or Russia, users are increasingly questioning the ongoing interference in American politics by foreign adversaries.

Influencer Ed Krassenstein wrote, “Why are so many MAGA influencers from outside the US? It’s almost as if they’re working for foreign governments.”

Author and academic Adam Cochrane said, “You learned behind the scenes how much of the MAGA hatred is just Russian propaganda.”

Donald Trump and several close associates were investigated for conspiracy or coordination with Russia during the 2016 election. Two members of Trump’s campaign were convicted.

Some content creators are paid for tweets that drive engagement on the site formerly known as Twitter, giving them a financial incentive to capitalize on the divisive nature of American politics.

In countries like Nigeria or Bangladesh, the US dollars paid by exes for their work can make a big difference to their lives. X payments are calculated based on engagement from verified premium accounts with content on X.