Musk Spends $76 Million on Texas Senate Race in Final Push

Elon Musk’s America PAC received more than $76 million in donations during the first two weeks of October. The personal political committee filed a pre-election report with the Federal Election Commission on Thursday evening. This injection of capital marks the most recent major financial push by the billionaire to support Republican candidates in the midterms.

The group spent nearly $43 million during that same two-week period. America PAC entered the final phase of the campaign with almost $47 million in cash on hand. The filing indicates a strategy focused on heavy spending in the lead-up to Election Day.

The Texas Senate race consumed the largest share of the new expenditures. The PAC allocated $15.2 million to that specific contest. This amount is double the total spent in Texas over the summer months. Of the October total, $12.4 million funded attacks on Democratic candidate James Talarico, while $2.8 million promoted Republican Ken Paxton.

Daily filings show the group has continued to target Talarico since the initial report. An additional $9.1 million has been directed against the Democrat. This brings the PAC’s total spending against Talarico this cycle to nearly $28 million. That figure represents roughly 40 percent of all funds the group has spent supporting or opposing candidates. The PAC also shifted its media strategy, spending $11.4 million on digital ads in the two-week window. This digital spend is close to the combined amount used for mail and texting.

Analysis of Federal Election Commission records shows Musk has given more than $445 million to Republican political groups this election cycle. This makes him the largest known individual donor in the midterms. More than $165 million of that total went to America PAC since July. The PAC declined to comment on the new filing.

Musk has also engaged with the race directly on social media. On Wednesday, he posted on X that "there is something deeply wrong with Talarico." He called the candidate "a creep" and claimed Talarico "would vote to take away your kids and transition them." Earlier in October, Musk amplified a claim that Talarico had been treated at a mental health facility.

Talarico responded to the posts on the same day. He stated, "There is something deeply wrong with a political system that allows one trillionaire to buy his own personal US Senator." The exchange highlights the personal nature of the campaign messaging in a state where both candidates have ties to major industries.

The race remains competitive. An Emerson College poll of 1,000 likely Texas voters conducted from October 17 to 19 placed Talarico at 48 percent and Paxton at 46 percent. The difference falls within the poll’s 3-point margin of error. The outcome will determine control of the Senate and impact potential investigations into Musk’s companies.

If Democrats win the House, committee chairs have signaled they will investigate Musk’s role in the Department of Government Efficiency. They also plan to look into federal contracts held by his companies. California Representative Zoe Lofgren described the number of conflicts of interest as "astounding." Democratic control of both chambers would create additional legislative challenges for Musk.

Silicon Valley Democrats are focusing on a different aspect of Musk’s business. Representatives Sam Liccardo, Jimmy Panetta, and Ro Khanna sent a letter to the White House demanding an investigation into restrictions on SpaceX’s Starshield satellite service in Ukraine. They stated that the next Congress "will closely scrutinize federal funding awarded to Mr. Musk's businesses." The midterm results will determine which party controls that scrutiny.