Donald Trump makes surprise return to X after 958 days

Donald Trump, on Thursday, surrendered himself to Georgia authorities and later made a surprise return to X, previously known as Twitter, which was his preferred platform.

Just two hours after turning himself in at the Fulton County Jail in Atlanta, Trump updated a post on X showing off his mug shot, along with a link to his website and two phrases: "ELECTION INTERFERENCE" and "NEVER SURRENDER!"

It's Trump's first post on the platform since January 8, 2021, when he wrote, "To all of those who have asked, I will not be going to the Inauguration on January 20th."

Elon Musk, the owner of X, restored Trump's account in November. However, Trump did not return to the platform until Thursday night.

It is uncertain if Trump's recent activity on social media is a sign of his return to the political scene, or if it is just a one-time occurrence. Trump has been regularly posting on his personal platform, Truth Social since his exclusivity agreement expired in June.

In the past, Trump was a frequent user of X even using the platform to announce policy changes while he was president.

However, during his second campaign and following his electoral defeat to Joe Biden, Trump used his Twitter account to spread baseless claims of election interference and to urge his supporters to take action.

Those posts might wind up being used in illegal activities aimed at his attempts to rig the 2020 election. Jack Smith, the special counsel, secured a search warrant to access Trump's account and view his private correspondence.

After the violence at the US Capitol on January 6, 2021, Trump's usage of the platform eventually resulted in his "permanent suspension" under the company's former administration, which was later ended by Musk.