Canadian MPs among social media users pivoting from X to Bluesky in the wake of U.S. vote

New Democrat MP Charlie Angus decided he had enough.

"I have tried three times to get off X because it is a dismal, toxic, hole of disinformation," said Angus, who used to regularly post to his 47,200 followers on X, formerly known as Twitter.

"After seeing what went down with the Trump election, the belligerent role of Elon Musk in undermining democracy, there is no way that I can be part of that."

A few days ago, Angus opened an account on Bluesky, a social media platform that began as a research project at Twitter before cutting ties with Twitter after Musk acquired the company and rebranded it as X.

"I had no idea what to expect," Angus said. "I thought I would end up with 10 followers and be just calling out in the wilderness. It has been a phenomenal experience. I feel like I have woken up sober after a month on a bender with rot gut."

While Angus has garnered 4,700 followers over a few days, a fraction of his following on X, he says engagement is up and the kind of hate and threat he has experienced on X is way down. He says he will keep his Twitter account, for now, but has switched to posting on Bluesky.

He's not alone.

While some people joined Bluesky in 2023 — when it launched as an invite-only service — in the wake of the U.S. election, the platform has exploded in popularity. In Canada, the trend has included members of Parliament. A count by CBC News identified at least 21 MPs with accounts on Bluesky, including NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh and Bloc Québécois Leader Yves-François Blanchet.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who has 6.5 million followers on X, isn't yet on Bluesky but hasn't ruled it out, said spokesperson Jenna Ghassabeh in a statement to CBC.

"The Prime Minister does not currently have a Bluesky account," said Ghassabeh. "We will continue to engage on a range of existing and emerging social media platforms and connect with Canadians where they are at."

Aides to Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre, who has 1.1 million followers on X, did not respond to questions from CBC News. The accounts in his name on Bluesky are parody accounts.

Green Party Leader Elizabeth May, who has 308,400 followers on X, said in an email response she is looking for a viable alternative.

"I am quite disgusted by X-Twitter and how its algorithms are used in rage-farming and misinformation…We really need a public bulletin board that is free of corruption and manipulation."

Meanwhile, the Green Party has opened an account on Bluesky, she said.