The donations

Elon Musk has given more than $276 million to Republican-aligned political groups since July, according to figures his representatives provided to The New York Times ahead of a federal filing deadline on Thursday, 15 October. The Times reports that the sum makes him the largest known donor in the 3 November midterm elections. Andrew Romeo, a spokesman for one of Musk's political action committees, confirmed the figures. The money flows into a network of committees that back Republican candidates for the Senate and the House of Representatives, including America PAC, which Musk founded in 2024.

Where the money went

The largest single contribution, $158 million, went to the Senate Leadership Fund, the main super PAC supporting Republican Senate candidates. Corriere della Sera reports that Musk's staff said the money arrived over the summer, and De Morgen notes that the amount is higher than what the Democratic counterpart of that group raised from all its donors combined. Another $76 million went to America PAC, which spent that money on a door-to-door campaign focused on seven decisive Senate races and nearly thirty House districts, according to Corriere della Sera. Smaller sums include $20 million to the Congressional Leadership Fund, $10 million to a committee backing Ken Paxton, the Republican Senate candidate in Texas, and $10 million to the Republican Governors Association.

Musk donations since July by recipient ($ million)
Senate Leadership Fund158America PAC76Congressional Leadership Fund20Committee backing Ken Paxton10Republican Governors Association10

Cycle totals and the Republican war chest

Across the 2025-2026 election cycle, Musk has put roughly $366 million into federal committees, including about $90 million before July, according to New York Times figures cited by Corriere della Sera. That is well above the roughly $290 million he gave in the 2023-2024 cycle, when he helped fund Donald Trump's return to the White House. Sources cited by the newspaper suggest that further contributions not made public in both cycles would raise his effective commitment. Republicans have raised more than $1.1 billion since the end of August, compared with $600 million for Democrats, according to LBC. NRC reports that most of the Republican money comes from MAGA Inc., a super PAC closely tied to Trump, rather than from Musk.

Musk political giving by election cycle (approximate) ($ million)
2023-2024 cycle2902025-2026 cycle366

Musk and Trump

Musk's relationship with Trump collapsed in 2025. LBC reports that Musk resigned in June 2025 from the Department of Government Efficiency over the president's tax and spending bill, which he called insane while threatening to form a new political party. Since then the two have reconciled. De Morgen reports that they appeared together at three events in the two weeks before its reporting, and LBC says Musk received the National Medal of Science and was chosen to co-lead a review of the Pentagon's modernisation. Democrats in the House have called for investigations into his government contracts as chief executive of SpaceX. In May, Musk had said he planned to scale back political spending, according to SAPO.

Texas and the November vote

In Texas, Republicans had spent $326 million on the Senate race until early October to help Ken Paxton against the Democratic candidate James Talarico, according to NRC. Musk, now a Texas resident according to NRC, has given $10 million to a committee supporting Paxton. LBC reports that Democrats are expected to gain the House, while the Senate is seen as a toss-up. Voters go to the polls on 3 November.