Musk spent nearly $500 million on the midterms and got almost nothing

Musk spent nearly $500 million on the midterms and got almost nothing

Musk spent nearly $500 million on the midterms and got almost nothing

Elon Musk put about $474 million into the 2026 midterms, according to a New York Times tally of filings through October 14, making him by far the election's largest individual donor, yet Democrats still wrested control of both the House and the Senate. A Forbes analysis found 44 of the 106 candidates he backed lost, including Ken Paxton's bid for a Texas Senate seat, Greg Abbott's bid to stay Texas governor and Vivek Ramaswamy's bid for Ohio governor. Most of the money flowed through his America PAC, the Senate Leadership Fund and the Congressional Leadership Fund, with $212 million aimed at the Texas Senate race alone. The losses leave Musk facing a Democratic Congress he has spent years antagonising, with his companies' federal contracts and approvals now under closer scrutiny.

Elon Musk put about $474 million into the 2026 midterms, according to a New York Times tally of filings through October 14, making him by far the election's largest individual donor, yet Democrats still wrested control of both the House and the Senate. A Forbes analysis found 44 of the 106 candidates he backed lost, including Ken Paxton's bid for a Texas Senate seat, Greg Abbott's bid to stay Texas governor and Vivek Ramaswamy's bid for Ohio governor. Most of the money flowed through his America PAC, the Senate Leadership Fund and the Congressional Leadership Fund, with $212 million aimed at the Texas Senate race alone. The losses leave Musk facing a Democratic Congress he has spent years antagonising, with his companies' federal contracts and approvals now under closer scrutiny.

Elon Musk put about $474 million into the 2026 midterms, according to a New York Times tally of filings through October 14, making him by far the election's largest individual donor, yet Democrats still wrested control of both the House and the Senate. A Forbes analysis found 44 of the 106 candidates he backed lost, including Ken Paxton's bid for a Texas Senate seat, Greg Abbott's bid to stay Texas governor and Vivek Ramaswamy's bid for Ohio governor. Most of the money flowed through his America PAC, the Senate Leadership Fund and the Congressional Leadership Fund, with $212 million aimed at the Texas Senate race alone. The losses leave Musk facing a Democratic Congress he has spent years antagonising, with his companies' federal contracts and approvals now under closer scrutiny.