Elon Musk could spend $200M boosting GOP as Texas’ – Business News
Elon Musk is prone to shell out nine-figure sums to help Republicans fend off Democrats on this 12 months’s midterm elections — notably in Texas, the place GOP Senate hopeful Ken Paxton faces a huge fundraising drawback.
Officials briefed on the matter advised Wired that Musk is predicted to spend between $100 million and $200 million to spice up Republicans, although the exact quantity could change.
The Tesla and SpaceX boss is predicted to focus his political struggle chest on voter turnout in aggressive races, with the intently watched Texas contest between Paxton and Democrat James Talarico among the many potential beneficiaries.
Elon Musk is predicted to spend between $100 million and $200 million to help Republicans on this 12 months’s midterm elections, in keeping with officers briefed on the matter. AFP through Getty Images
Talarico has raised $68.6 million by way of June 30, more than seven occasions the roughly $9.2 million hauled in by Paxton’s marketing campaign, in keeping with Federal Election Commission filings.
The Democrat additionally held $21.5 million in money on the finish of June in contrast with simply $1.8 million for Paxton, the filings confirmed.
Despite the huge money hole, the race stays a toss-up.
An Emerson College ballot carried out Aug. 9 and 10 had Paxton main Talarico 47% to 46% amongst seemingly voters, whereas eight nonpartisan public polls carried out for the reason that Republican runoff collectively show the race hovering round a lifeless heat.
Musk’s money could help Paxton make up some of the distinction, notably whether it is pumped into a subtle get-out-the-vote operation, in keeping with Costas Panagopoulos, a distinguished professor of political science at Northeastern University.
Republican Senate hopeful Ken Paxton could get a main financial enhance if Musk directs half of his anticipated nine-figure midterm spending towards Texas. Getty Images
“It’s a considerable sum that has the potential to shake things up in certain races across the country,” Panagopoulos advised The Post.
“Money does not dictate outcomes in elections,” he added, however main spending can pressure opponents to spend more and “create communication imbalances that are hard to overcome.”
The strategy would construct on Musk’s huge political operation during the 2024 presidential election, when he spent a minimum of $288 million serving to Donald Trump and different Republicans, in keeping with an evaluation of year-end FEC filings.
Most of Musk’s 2024 money flowed by way of America PAC, the tremendous PAC he bankrolled to help Trump return to the White House.
Filings accessible by early December confirmed roughly $239 million from Musk going to the group, with a later year-end submitting including about $11.2 million in in-kind spending for petition incentives.
America PAC turned a main half of Trump’s ground operation, paying third-party canvassing companies more than $46 million throughout battleground states to focus on low-propensity voters, in keeping with Wired.
Democratic Senate hopeful James Talarico has raised $68.6 million by way of June 30 — more than seven occasions the roughly $9.2 million raised by Paxton. Getty Images
Trump in the end swept six battleground states, although Trump officers weren’t satisfied that America PAC’s paid canvassing operation — fairly than the candidate’s own appeal to his base — deserved the credit.
Musk continued pouring money into Republican causes after Trump took workplace.
He gave more than $73 million to Republican causes in 2025, together with roughly $45 million to America PAC, and wrote three separate $5 million checks on June 27 to MAGA Inc., the Congressional Leadership Fund and the Senate Leadership Fund.
His spending continued this 12 months, together with a $10 million January contribution to Fight for Kentucky, a tremendous PAC supporting Republican Senate candidate Nate Morris, and a minimum of $1.6 million attributed to Musk by America PAC by way of March 31.
Musk’s money could even be deployed past Texas, with Panagopoulos pointing to aggressive Senate races in Georgia, Ohio and Maine as examples the place massive investments could probably transfer the needle.
Musk continued pouring money into Republican causes in 2025 after rising as the largest particular person donor of the 2024 election cycle. AFP through Getty Images
Democrats, nevertheless, are unlikely to go away Musk’s spending unanswered.
“This is not going to happen in a vacuum,” Panagopoulos mentioned.
“Democrats will respond, and even if they can’t find someone with pockets as deep as this, there are other ways to raise funds to combat what might be happening on the Republican side.”
The Post has sought remark from Musk.
