Musk's $474m GOP bet fails; mocks own "space lasers"

Elon Musk, the world's richest man, responded with sarcasm to the Republican Party's losses in the US midterm elections, after candidates he backed failed to deliver the results he had hoped for.

"Looks like my election interference space lasers didn't work this time," Musk wrote on his X account, alongside a shrugging emoji. The post was a sardonic jab at the influence attributed to him in the election cycle, after he poured unprecedented sums into Republican campaigns.

According to an investigation published in the New York Times, he donated approximately $474 million to political groups and candidates since the start of 2025. The figure is without precedent for a single donor who is not himself running for office; only billionaire Michael Bloomberg spent more in a single election cycle, in 2020, when he ran for president.

The money flowed to several key power centers within the party. Around $216 million went to America PAC, the political action committee Musk founded; roughly $168 million to the main fund supporting Republican Senate candidates; and another $30 million or so to the organization backing the party's House candidates.

Musk invested enormous sums into Texas. According to the report, some $224 million was directed to political efforts in the state, including support for Republican Senate candidate Ken Paxton. Despite the massive investment, Democrats notched gains in the state, among them Gina Hinojosa's victory in the race for Texas governor and James Talarico's win in the Senate race.

This is not the first time Musk has poured huge sums into an election cycle. In the 2024 elections he spent around $290 million to help Donald Trump and Republican candidates, and after Trump's victory he was given a central role in the administration, heading the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).

Later, a public clash erupted between Musk and Trump over the president's economic policy, and the possibility was even raised that Musk would launch a new political party. The two eventually reconciled, and Musk resumed funneling enormous sums into the Republican election machine.