Elon Musk gave around $75 million to his pro-Donald Trump spending group in the span of three months, according to federal disclosures, underscoring how the billionaire has become crucial to the Republican candidate’s efforts to win the November 5th US presidential election.
America PAC, which is focused on turning out voters in closely contested states that could decide the election, spent around $72 million of that in the July-September period, Federal Election Commission records show. That is more than any other pro-Trump super PAC focused on turning out voters.
The Trump campaign is broadly reliant on outside groups for canvassing voters, meaning the super PAC founded by Mr Musk – the world’s richest man – plays an outsize role in the razor-thin election between Mr Trump and Democrat Kamala Harris.
Mr Musk, chief executive of electric car manufacturer Tesla, was the sole donor to the group in that period. He has said he has voted for Democratic presidential candidates in the past, but has taken a sharp turn to the right in this election. He endorsed Mr Trump in July and appeared with him at a rally in Pennsylvania earlier this month.
On Wednesday, Mr Musk said in a post on his X social media platform that he will be “giving a series of talks” throughout Pennsylvania, less than two weeks after his appearance with Mr Trump in the state. He said people only needed to sign a petition on his America PAC website to attend his talks from “tomorrow night through Monday.”
Pennsylvania is considered a crucial state for both Mr Trump and Ms Harris in the race for the White House.
Mr Musk’s donations to America PAC propel him into the exclusive club of Republican mega donors, a list that also includes banking heir Timothy Mellon and casino billionaire Miriam Adelson.
However, it was reported earlier this month that Mr Musk has secretly funded a conservative political group for years, well before his public embrace of Mr Trump.
America PAC declined to comment on Mr Musk’s donations and he did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
America PAC is focused on encouraging Americans who like Mr Trump but do not always vote to cast ballots this cycle, a high-risk, labour-intensive strategy by the Republican candidate’s campaign.
The group, which started its work later in the election than other PACs, has encountered some problems with hiring and its contractors. Since July, it has fired two big contractors it had hired to knock on doors.
It has also struggled to hire door knockers in several battleground states in part because by the time the PAC became operational many other canvassing groups had already staffed up, sources briefed on the issues said. The group had around $4 million left on hand by the end of September, the filings show.
Separate filings showed that Ms Adelson donated $95 million to another pro-Trump super PAC, Preserve America PAC, in the same period. – Reuters
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