Elon Musk Puts $158 Million Behind Ken Paxton’s Texas Senate Bid
Elon Musk has contributed $158 million to support Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton in the state's dead-heat Senate race, with Democratic rival James Talarico raising $64 million in the third quarter as both parties fight over a 53-47 Republican Senate.
AUSTIN, Texas — Elon Musk has contributed $158 million to support Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s campaign for the U.S. Senate, according to reporting by USA Today, putting the billionaire Trump supporter among the biggest financial backers in one of the most expensive and closely watched Senate races of the 2026 midterms.
The money arrives as Paxton’s Democratic rival, state Rep. James Talarico, raised $64 million in the third quarter, a large haul for a Texas challenger in a state that has not elected a Democrat to statewide office since 1994. An average of recent polling by Real Clear Politics shows the two candidates in a dead heat.
The stakes are control of the Senate, which Republicans now lead 53-47. The size of Musk’s contributions shows how much money is flowing into the fight for that majority, less than three weeks before the midterm elections.
Musk gave $75 million to SLF PAC, the Senate Leadership Fund, on Sept. 9, and another $83 million to the same PAC on Sept. 22, according to USA Today. The PAC then passed $75 million to Texas PAC on Sept. 10 and $83 million on Sept. 24 — the only two contributions the Texas group received.
A record of big political spending
Musk contributed nearly $300 million to Republican groups in 2024, and he became a top adviser to President Donald Trump as head of the Department of Government Efficiency. His political spending has also drawn legal scrutiny: Musk and his America PAC agreed this week to settle lawsuits over the group’s $1 million voter lottery from the 2024 campaign.
Musk’s footprint in Texas extends well beyond campaign money. He owns the social media platform X and leads Tesla and SpaceX; SpaceX has its corporate headquarters, a rocket testing facility, a Starship spaceport and a Starlink manufacturing plant in the state.
Trump plans another Texas trip
President Trump has campaigned in Texas three times in a month, and said on Oct. 15 that he would return. “I’ll go back,” Trump said. “If it’s necessary I’ll go back.”
Reporting based on coverage by USA Today.
