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Musk has invested heavily in Texas and has lost several elections one after another. The Democratic Party’s victory was interpreted as a voter reaction against the technology giants and money-power politics, and led to their companies and related industries facing closer scrutiny.
World’s richest technology tycoonmusk (Elon Musk) set a record by donating $474 million in this year’s midterm elections.texas amounting to NT$224 million, butrepublican party US Senate candidate Ken Paxton suffered a crushing defeat, and Governor Greg Abbott lost his bid to win a fourth consecutive term. CNBC News Channel analyzed on the 4th that the Democratic Party’s sweeping victory represents voters’ strong opposition to Musk and the artificial intelligence (AI) industry. President Trump and his technology allies used their political influence to promote the construction of data centers, and they will face tough scrutiny from the Democratic-majority Congress.
Musk’s heavy pressure on Texas failed, and the stock prices of both Space Exploration Technology Company (SpaceX) and Tesla (TESLA) fell in pre-market trading on the 4th. Under the tutelage of Abbott’s pro-business policies, Musk’s two companies have prospered over the years.
James Tallarico, the Democratic candidate who won the Texas US Senate election, did not mention Musk by name in his victory speech on the evening of the 3rd, but said: “We must get big money out of politics. No billionaire or trillionaire can buy our elections.”
“We have to break this economic system that only benefits the top 1 percent,” Tallarico said.
The Wall Street Journal analyzed that Musk’s donation of more than $160 million to Texas betting was used as propaganda to attack Talarico. But Talarico used Musk’s massive investment as a rallying point for his base, setting the tone for this election as a clash between “voters and financial power.”
“It’s David versus Goliath,” Tallarico told supporters at a pre-election rally.
Jesse Lintzenich, a senior researcher at the German Marshall Fund, a Washington think tank, said in an exclusive interview with CNBC’s “Squawk Box Europe” program on the 4th that Musk donated excessively to the election in Texas. “The poll results clearly show that voters are deeply disappointed with Musk’s involvement in Trump’s inner circle.”
Tesla has the country’s largest car manufacturing plant in suburban Austin, and SpaceX launches rockets from Starbase in South Texas. Musk has continued to increase investments in areas such as AI and semiconductor manufacturing.
The operations of Musk’s companies are highly dependent on Texas government policy decisions in terms of electricity, water, environmental permits, infrastructure, and tax incentives.
Texas Governor-elect Gina Hinojosa’s campaign politics not only oppose Musk, but also the state government’s generous subsidies for companies. He has called for suspending new data center plans, ending corporate tax breaks and requiring developers to bear the cost of power.
In his victory speech, Hinojosa said that power “must be taken back from the powerful people who are used to listening from behind the scenes in this state.”
Musk’s super political action committee “America PAC” has donated nearly 87 million yuan in 44 federal elections this year, according to Federal Election Commission (FEC) filings. As of the morning of the 4th, Republican candidates supported by Musk had lost 29 elections, won 3 elections, and the results of another 12 elections have not yet been determined. According to calculations, 93% of Musk’s donations were spent on elections in which the Republican Party lost.
Summary FAQ
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His donations for this year’s midterm elections reached 474 million yuan, setting a historic record, of which 224 million yuan was invested in Texas alone. However, most of the Republican candidates he supported still lost, and the gerrymandering strategy failed to work in Texas.
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The report noted that the Democratic Party’s victory was seen by voters as a reflection of Musk’s involvement in politics and opposition to the expansion of the AI industry, as well as the billionaire’s influence on the election, representing greater resistance to the technology industry’s reliance on state government resources.
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Tesla has a large factory in Austin, and SpaceX relies on Starbase, Texas, to launch rockets. Both companies are highly dependent on state government policies for power, water, licensing and tax incentives.
