American billionaire Elon Musk, who became the largest known political donor in the 2026 mid-term elections, reacted ironically to the Republicans’ defeat. Despite a record $474 million spent on supporting the party and its candidates, the Democrats secured control of both houses of the US Congress. The defeat of Ken Paxton, the Texas Senate candidate he backed, was particularly painful for Musk.
- Elon Musk joked about faulty «space lasers» following the Republicans’ defeat.
- According to the New York Times’ calculations, the billionaire has allocated $474 million to political campaigns.
- Over $200 million of his political expenditure is linked to his support for Ken Paxton.
- Democrat James Talarico has won the Senate election in Texas for the first time in 38 years.
Musk joked about interfering in elections using space lasers
Elon Musk responded to the results of the US mid-term elections with a short, ironic post on his own social media account X. Once it became clear that the Democrats had won in Congress, the billionaire joked that his «space lasers for interfering in elections» hadn’t worked this time.
The article appeared on the morning of 4 November, when the American media were already reporting on the Republicans’ loss of control over the House of Representatives and the Senate. Musk, who had invested an unprecedented sum in the election campaign, did not comment in detail on the results of the vote.
His joke alludes to previously published reports claiming that he allegedly has thousands of lasers in space. There is no evidence that such technologies have been used to interfere in elections.
Almost half a billion dollars to support the Republicans
According to estimates by *The New York Times*, during the 2026 election cycle Musk has allocated $474 million to political campaigns. This is the largest documented amount of donations from a single private donor over a single election cycle in US history, excluding candidates who self-funded their presidential campaigns.
The largest amount of funding — around $216 million — went to America PAC, a political action committee set up by Musk. He transferred a further $168 million to the Senate Leadership Fund, which supports Republican candidates for the Senate. Around $30 million went to the Congressional Leadership Fund, which works to support Republicans in the House of Representatives.
A significant proportion of the funding was channelled into the Texas elections. Musk’s total expenditure on supporting the Republican candidate Kenna Paxton and political campaigns in the state totalled approximately $224 million.
In Texas, the Republicans lost the Senate election for the first time in 38 years
Despite receiving substantial financial backing, Ken Paxton lost to the Democrat James Talarico in the race for a seat in the US Senate. Talarico’s victory was confirmed by US television channels and the Associated Press, whilst Paxton himself conceded defeat.
This result was a historic one for Texas. The last time a Democrat won the US Senate election for the state was in 1988, when Lloyd Bentsen was re-elected.
The Texas campaign became one of the most expensive in modern American politics. Musk actively supported Paxton not only financially but also publicly, criticising his Democratic opponent on social media.
The Republicans’ loss of their majority in Congress is reshaping the balance of power in Washington for the second half of the presidential term Donald Trump. The Democrats will take control of the legislative agenda and key parliamentary committees once the new Congress takes office in January 2027.
