New Political Donations

Elon Musk donated $158 million to a super PAC supporting Ken Paxton's Senate bid.

Funding Through Senate Leadership Fund

Musk gave $158 million in political donations routed through the Senate Leadership Fund to support Ken Paxton.

Timeline of Donations

Musk gave $75 million to SLF, which transferred $75 million to the Texas PAC, then gave $83 million to SLF for another transfer.

Senate Republicans' Situation

Senate Republicans needed Musk's funding to defend Ken Paxton after polls showed a tight race with limited fundraising.

Political Context

Senate Republicans had backed Ken Paxton over Senator John Cornyn, who lost in a runoff after Trump endorsed Paxton.

Democratic Response

Democrats criticized Musk's influence as undue political money from billionaires.

“I don’t care if they’re Democratic super PACs or Republican super PACs, I think we’ve got to ban them all because there’s way too much influence from big money in our politics”