Contract comes to light after questions raised about the increasing role of Musk in Australia’s communications systems

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The Australian Electoral Commission is planning on using Elon Musk’s Starlink services as back up for transmitting voting results information in the upcoming federal election.

In a contract published late last year, the AEC appointed Telstra responsible for the agency’s fixed line and Starlink services until mid-2027, in a deal worth $1.38m. A spokesperson for the AEC confirmed Starlink could be used in the upcoming election for sensitive election data.

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