As Republicans suffered a landslide defeat and Texas elected its first Democratic governor in more than three decades, one of the biggest losers of the US midterms was not on the ballot: billionaire Elon Musk .
The GOP’s largest donor even threatened retaliation last month on his social media platform after a report said Democrats were considering probes into his companies if they won midterms. Those bets unraveled as Democrats seized both chambers of Congress and Gina Hinojosa defeated Greg Abbott in the Texas governor’s race, in a stinging rebuke to US President Donald Trump , a close Musk ally whom the billionaire helped elect.
Also Team | ‘Trump is still your president’: White House after Democrats win big in midterms “A Democratic sweep of Congress would put pressure on tech and potentially bring regulatory pressure on everything AI and possibly slow down the wild, wild west growth figures that we see daily and often take for granted,” said Jake Dollarhide, CEO of Longbow Asset Management.
Musk has also drawn scrutiny from Democratic lawmakers over restrictions on satellite communications used by Ukraine’s military, mass federal job cuts under his watch at DOGE and the government contracts and subsidies flowing to his companies. In Texas, Musk will have to navigate an already strained relationship with Hinojosa. He will also face newly elected US Senator James Talarico, against whom he spent heavily while backing Republican Ken Paxton. Incoming governor Hinojosa had sued to obtain emails between Musk and Abbott and accused the former governor of selling out the Lone Star state by offering favorable deals to the billionaire.
Earlier reporting noted: The Tesla CEO had also helped elect US President Donald Trump and spent over a quarter of a billion dollars to help him win the 2024 presidential elections.
Earlier reporting noted: After Republicans suffered a stunning defeat and Texas elected its first Democratic governor in more than thirty years, Musk emerged as a major political and financial loser.
