Donald Trump Jr returns to Twitter following suspension to complain about new Barbie collection

President’s oldest son suggested doll must be a Democrat and an election cheat

Donald Trump Jr has returned to Twitter after being temporarily banned from the platform to complain about the new Barbie doll release, suggesting the doll is a Democrat and an election cheat.

Mr Trump Jr had his Twitter account temporarily suspended on Tuesday for posting “misleading and potentially harmful information” about the coronavirus.

Throughout the suspension, the businessman was prevented from tweeting or using other features such as following other users or liking their posts, according to a screenshot shared by his ally and Republican strategist Andrew Surabian.

However, Mr Trump Jr made his comeback onto Twitter on Wednesday, using his reinstated platform to criticise the new Barbie doll launch.

“‘Voter’ Barbie must be a Democrat because she’s already wearing an “I Voted” sticker and yet she’s got another ballot in her hand,” he wrote of the child’s toy.

President Donald Trump and Republicans have frequently raised fears over voter fraud ahead of the November election, particularly in regards to mail-in voting, a method that Democrat representatives have pushed to ensure is widely available amid the coronavirus pandemic.

The president has previously suggested: “you’d never have a Republican elected in this country again” if measures to make voting easier in the US, including widespread mail-in voting, were supported.

Last month, he retweeted an article concerning Attorney General William Barr’s comment’s that expanding mail-in voting “absolutely opens the floodgates to fraud”.

Documented cases of mail-ballot fraud are extremely rare and experts have said successful mail-in fraud by foreign actors by mailing out fake ballots would be near impossible, Reuters reported.

Mr Trump’s own advisory commission on election integrity spent eight months, from May 2017 to January 2018, probing claims of voter fraud and did not turn up a single confirmed instance.

The president’s oldest son made the return to the site to chide the doll after he was temporarily suspended for sharing a video of a Houston physician promoting hydroxychloroquine as a cure for the novel coronavirus.

“The Tweet is in violation of our Covid-19 misinformation policy,” a spokesperson for the platform said. “The account will be locked until the account owner removes the Tweet.”

The newly released 2020 Barbie campaign team set features four dolls who each have roles within the campaign and election process, including a campaign manager, a fundraiser, and a voter and a black presidential candidate.

Toy company Mattel said the set aims to “expose girls to public leadership roles and pique their interest in shaping the future”.