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| - A rumor circulating online in late January 2025 claimed tech entrepreneur Elon Musk received a nomination for the Nobel Peace Prize.
For example, on Jan. 29, a user on the Musk-owned social media platform X posted (archived), "BREAKING: Elon Musk nominated for Nobel Peace Prize." Another user also claimed (archived), "Elon Musk has been nominated for the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize in recognition of his efforts to protect free speech." Neither post featured any further information or links to news media outlets.
The rumor that someone nominated Musk for the Nobel Peace Prize was true. Branko Grims, a Slovenian member of the European Parliament, confirmed his nomination of Musk in Jan. 29 post on X (archived). The European Parliament website listed Grims as a member of the conservative Group of the European People's Party (Christian Democrats). Politico.eu previously reported Musk received a nomination for the 2024 prize, as part of a field of 286 candidates.
In this article, we document Grims' stated reasoning behind his nomination of Musk, as well as provide information about the number of nominees the Nobel Prize organization receives each year.
We contacted both Grims and the Nobel Prize organization for further comment and will update this story if we receive responses.
Grims' Nomination Announcement
Grims' X post announcing his nomination of Musk featured a screenshot of an email confirmation from the Nobel Prize organization. His post read, "The proposal that Mr. Elon Musk, for his consistent support for the fundamental human right of freedom of speech and thus for peace, receives the Nobel Peace Prize 2025, was successfully submitted today. Sincere thanks to all the co-proposers and everyone who helped with this challenging project!"
Grims' nomination of Musk occurred in the days following the second inauguration of U.S. President Donald Trump, who on Jan. 20, his first day back in the White House, signed an executive order establishing the Musk-led Department of Government Efficiency. Musk donated $200 million to Trump's campaign, according to The Associated Press. (Months earlier, he posted (archived) on X, "Just to be super clear, I am not donating money to either candidate for U.S. President.")
In late December 2024, Grims said during an interview with the Brussels Signal news media outlet, "I propose that Elon Musk receives the Nobel Peace Prize for the next year because he did much more for the freedom of speech, which is a basic human right, much more than anybody else in the third millennium." He also cited Musk's purported crusade against censorship, and said Musk's takeover of Twitter (now the misinformation-filled X) and Trump's reelection stood as "the best of what [could have] happened for Western civilization in the last few years." He also posted (archived) his proposal for Musk's nomination earlier that month.
As of this writing, we had not yet uncovered information about other qualified nominators who may have also submitted Musk's name to the Nobel Prize organization.
The Nobel Peace Prize Nomination Process
The Nobel Prize organization's website provides clarifying information on its nomination, consideration and award process. It also provides perspective and context regarding the field of candidates.
"A nomination for the Nobel Peace Prize may be submitted by any person who meets the nomination criteria," the page reads, adding that "names of the nominees and other information about the nominations cannot be revealed until 50 years later."
In 2024, the Norwegian Nobel Institute registered 286 candidates for that year's Nobel Peace Prize — 197 individuals and 89 organizations. The year 2016 saw the highest number of nominations ever received, with 376 candidates.
The Nobel Prize organization listed several types of "qualified nominators" deemed as acceptable persons to submit nominations. Examples include members of national assemblies and national governments of sovereign states as well as current heads of state, people associated with the Norwegian Nobel Committee, specific categories of university professors and past award recipients, among others.
The annual deadline for nomination submissions falls on Jan. 31. In February and March, the Norwegian Nobel Committee "assesses the candidates' work and prepares a short list." After "adviser review" from March through August, in October the committee chooses Nobel Peace Prize laureates through a majority vote, then announces the names in the same month. An award ceremony follows in December.
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