Texas Showdown: Musk Injects $76 Million Into Midterm Final Stretch

Elon Musk has doubled down on the Texas Senate race in the final days before the midterm elections, according to a pre-election report filed with the Federal Election Commission on Thursday evening. The billionaire’s personal political committee, America PAC, reported injecting more than $76 million in cash during the first two weeks of October. This massive infusion of capital marks a significant acceleration in spending as the campaign enters its final leg. The group spent nearly $43 million in that same two-week window and entered this last phase holding close to $47 million in cash reserves.

The Texas contest has become the primary focus of these new expenditures. The PAC directed $15.2 million toward that specific race, a figure that is double the amount spent there during the entire summer. Of that total, $12.4 million was allocated to negative advertising against Democratic candidate James Talarico, while $2.8 million went to promoting his Republican opponent, Ken Paxton. Daily filings indicate an additional $9.1 million has been spent against Talarico since the initial report, bringing the total cycle spending against him to nearly $28 million. This single candidate now accounts for approximately 40 percent of all money the PAC has deployed to support or oppose candidates this election.

The committee has also noticeably shifted its advertising strategy toward digital channels. In the same two-week period, America PAC spent $11.4 million on online ads. This digital expenditure is now comparable to what the group spent on traditional mail and text messaging combined. This pivot suggests a broader effort to reach voters through their social media feeds and search engines rather than relying solely on physical campaign materials.

Musk’s financial commitment to the Republican side of the ledger has grown substantially this cycle. According to an analysis of FEC filings, he has provided more than $445 million to Republican political groups in total, securing his position as the largest known individual donor for the midterms. More than $165 million of that sum was funneled specifically into America PAC since July. The committee declined to provide further comment on the recent filings.

Beyond the money, Musk has been active on social media, specifically on X, where he has posted about the race. On Wednesday, he claimed that "there is something deeply wrong with Talarico," later labeling him "a creep." He asserted without providing evidence that Talarico "would vote to take away your kids and transition them." Earlier in the month, Musk amplified a false claim regarding Talarico’s treatment at a mental health facility. Talarico responded to these attacks on the same day, stating: "There is something deeply wrong with a political system that allows one trillionaire to buy his own personal US Senator."

Despite the heavy spending, the race remains statistically close. A poll from Emerson College, conducted from October 17 to 19 among 1,000 likely Texas voters, showed Talarico leading by two points. He polled at 48 percent compared to Paxton’s 46 percent. However, this difference falls within the poll’s margin of error of three points, keeping the outcome in the toss-up category as election day approaches.

The potential consequences of the election results extend well beyond the Senate seat in Texas. If Democrats secure control of the House, committee leaders have indicated they will investigate Musk’s role in the Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE. They also plan to examine his companies’ federal contracts and what Representative Zoe Lofgren of California described as an "astounding" number of conflicts of interest. A unified Democratic control of Congress would present even greater challenges for his business interests.

Silicon Valley Democrats have added another specific target to their list of investigative priorities. On Friday, they sent a letter to the White House demanding an investigation into restrictions on SpaceX’s Starshield satellite service in Ukraine. In that correspondence, Representatives Sam Liccardo, Jimmy Panetta, and Ro Khanna pledged that the next Congress "will closely scrutinize federal funding awarded to Mr. Musk’s businesses."