Elon Musk spends record millions in US midterms as Democrats win big

Elon Musk spent almost 450 million dollars, or about 334 million pounds, to back Republican candidates in the US midterm races. It was the most money anyone has ever spent in an election cycle, but it did not stop Democrats from winning a resounding victory.

Key Races And Results

Among the most notable wins went to Democrat James Talarico, who beat Republican Ken Paxton for a US Senate seat in Texas. Musk spent at least 45 million dollars to support Paxton, based on a BBC analysis of campaign finance data. Musk also spent millions in races across Arizona, Michigan, Wisconsin, and Minnesota, with records showing his spending continued into Monday. By Tuesday night, Musk seemed to admit defeat by joking on X that his election-interfering space lasers did not work. Following the losses, stock values for Musk's companies dropped on Wednesday morning, with Tesla down by 4.9 percent and SpaceX down by 3.4 percent, even though tech stocks were broadly up.

Business And Regulatory Impact

SpaceX has won an estimated 10 billion dollars in new government contracts since Donald Trump started his second non-consecutive term. Several democratic lawmakers now say the company's large and growing role in government and national security should be investigated. SpaceX and other tech companies also face new potential difficulties with the future development of massive data centres. In Georgia, where SpaceX has data centre operations, the newly elected Democratic governor ran partly on limiting the rapid rise of these buildings and the huge tax breaks tech companies usually get to build them. Dozens of state measures to limit data centre development passed on Tuesday, while tech companies use these facilities to run online platforms like ChatGPT, Claude, and Musk's own X and xAI. James Flintoft, head of investment solutions at AJ Bell, said the results bring a period of uncertainty for investors as they assess whether tech companies will face greater regulation. Senator Ed Markey responded on X to a question about whether major tech executives would be targeted, stating they will need to plant new forests for all the subpoenas they will be printing.

Context

Midterm elections happen midway through a US president's four-year term, deciding control of the US Congress and state governments. Wealthy individuals often spend large sums to influence these political outcomes, though individual spending records like this remain rare. Changes in congressional control directly impact which political party sets policy priorities and leads government investigations.