Elon Musk has contributed at least $445.77 million to Republican-aligned political action committees and groups for the 2026 US midterms, according to Federal Election Commission data through 29 October. The total makes him the largest single-cycle political donor in modern US history, surpassing his own roughly $300 million outlay for Donald Trump’s 2024 campaign. Despite saying he would scale back political giving, Musk increased his spending by about $200 million in the final two months before the midterms. His donations are presented as a measure of how an extraordinarily wealthy individual can influence elections, particularly as Republicans seek to retain control of Congress while polls point to possible Democratic gains.
The largest share, $216 million, went to America PAC, Musk’s own organization, which has targeted 43 House and Senate contests in 17 states with advertising, texts and mailers. It has spent most heavily in Texas, where it directed more than $33 million toward electing Republican Ken Paxton; Musk separately gave $168 million to the Senate Leadership Fund, which supports Paxton. America PAC spent $28 million on attacks against Democratic candidate James Talarico, including an online ad shown more than 10 million times in eight days, and Musk amplified the group’s messaging on X. His giving exceeds that of other major donors and is greater than the combined 2024-election spending of leading Silicon Valley donors. The stakes for Musk include an administration whose policies and contracts have benefited his businesses, though the donations amount to less than 0.05% of his estimated $924 billion fortune.
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