Three takeaways from Elon Musk's latest political donations
New filings show the world's richest person spent this summer again trying to help Republicans win office, with most of his focus on one candidate.
Three takeaways from Elon Musk's latest political donations
Billionaire Tesla CEO Elon Musk is once again channeling hundreds of millions of dollars into a US election, this time with the goal of helping Republicans keep control of Congress.
According to Federal Election Commission (FEC) filings reviewed by the BBC, Musk gave more than $200m (£150m) in the quarter ending 30 September.
The filings were released with a little over two weeks left before the 2026 midterm election, when many House of Representatives and Senate races are tight and Republicans could lose their majorities in both chambers.
Musk also spent significant money, $290m, and effort helping elect President Donald Trump and other Republicans in 2024.
Here is where the world’s richest person has been donating this time, and what it could mean for his businesses.
The filings showed that most of the money donated last quarter by the world’s only trillionaire, $158m, went to the Senate Leadership Fund (SLF) Pac.
It is one of the largest publicly known single political donations in US history, and some have said it may be the biggest ever.
SLF is a super Pac that supports Republican Senate candidates in difficult races.
It quickly passed the money on to a group backing Texas Republican Ken Paxton. The state attorney general, Paxton is in danger of losing to Democrat James Talarico in a race for a seat his party has controlled for decades. The two have been polling neck and neck, and the result is seen as a bellwether for the future of Republican power.
Super Pacs are independent "political action committees" that can raise unlimited sums of money and play a major role in financing US political campaigns.
Musk also gave more than $80m to the America Pac he created during the 2024 election.
Last quarter, America Pac spent millions on digital communications, mailings and phone calls opposing Talarico, as well as thousands on political marketing to support Paxton.
At the same time, Musk gave another $10m to Lone Star Liberty Pac, a group mainly backing Paxton, records show.
The movement of money points to a major theme for Musk: Texas.
In recent years, the tech CEO has been shifting his business empire — including SpaceX, Tesla and X — to the southern US state after voicing frustration with doing business in California.
Texas has given Musk fewer government regulations and no state personal income tax and no corporate income tax.
Keeping politicians in power who support looser government restrictions, as Republicans generally do, could help preserve that environment for Musk.
And his heavy spending in Texas and in the Texas Senate race appears to show Musk understands that, political analyst Cayce Myers told the BBC.
"Republicans have a fundraising advantage this time, but fundraising by itself does not actually guarantee success," he said.
For many voters this year, technology has become a leading issue. People across the country are calling for greater government oversight of artificial intelligence, data centres and social media.
That is leading tech figures like Musk to build closer ties with the Republican party, which has historically favored lighter government regulation, Myers said.
"What [tech leaders] are looking at is a future where there is growing demand and call for regulation and I think they want to be in an advantageous position," he said. "We're seeing them shift, and fall behind Republicans."
Other tech leaders, such as OpenAI president and his wife Greg and Anna Brockman are also backing Republicans with large donations.
The couple gave $25m to the Trump-aligned MAGA Inc Pac last year.
Myer said it is not only the tech sector, but also industries like cryptocurrency and gambling, where large sums of money are being donated in an effort to gain influence.
"This is the idea of shaping the regulatory environment through contributions," he said.