Midterms: Musk donates hundreds of millions to Republicans ahead of midterms

Washington. According to media reports, US billionaire and Tesla boss Elon Musk donated around 276 million dollars (almost 247 million euros) to US President Donald Trump's Republican Party before the important midterm elections at the beginning of November. He is by far the largest known donor to the Republicans in this year's election campaign, reported the New York Times and the broadcaster CNN, citing spokesman Musk.

A large portion of the donations made since July - around $158 million - have gone to the Senate Leadership Fund - a so-called Republican Super Pac that can accept unlimited amounts of money and use them to promote specific candidates or political causes. The abbreviation “Pac” stands for “Political Action Committee”. More than $76 million also went to the “America PAC” founded by Musk.

Musk - the richest man in the world - donated more than $250 million to Trump during the 2024 presidential campaign. This earned him the role of a close confidant at the beginning of Trump's second term in the White House. He was often seen at the president's side and was entrusted with cutting government spending.

Musk and his fellow campaigners on the Department of Government Efficiency (Doge) cuts committee were sometimes extremely brutal. So development aid was “thrown into the wood chipper,” as he put it. Protests followed, which also affected the business of the electric car manufacturer Tesla, which is led by Musk.

The break between Musk and Trump followed in mid-2025 after a dispute over a tax law pushed by the president. Musk then publicly claimed that without his help, Trump would not have been re-elected.

Trump said the billionaire was only upset because he cut electric car subsidies. Trump and Musk later reconciled, but the relationship remained distant.

With the donations, Musk is also initiating a personal change of course. In May 2025 he announced that he would donate significantly less in the future. With the monetary gifts, Musk also explains how he wants to play a relevant role in US politics in the future.

The vote on November 3rd, in which the entire House of Representatives and around a third of the Senate will vote, will have a major impact on Trump's ability to act during the remainder of his term in office. His Republicans currently hold the majority in both chambers of parliament. If the Democrats take away even one of them, they can complicate or block the Trump administration's legislative proposals and increase their control of the government through committee investigations.