Elon Musk Fires Back After Democrats Sweep the Midterms

A political cartoon published by Automotive News captures the moment in a single image: Elon Musk, the world's richest man, standing alone as a towering blue wave crashes over him.

The cartoon, drawn by Leo Michael, shows Musk in his signature black T-shirt, looking up at the wave with a grim expression.

The blue wave represents the Democratic Party's sweeping victory in the 2026 midterm elections.

Democrats took control of both the House and the Senate on Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2026.

They also flipped Texas's state leadership, electing Democrat Gina Hinojosa as governor and Democrat James Talarico as the state's first U.S. senator since 1988.

Musk had spent heavily to prevent exactly this outcome.

According to The New York Times, Musk contributed $474 million during the 2026 election cycle.

Nearly half of that total — about $212 million — went toward supporting Republican Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, the Times reported.

Paxton lost his Senate race to Talarico by roughly 12 percentage points, with Talarico receiving 5,445,156 votes to Paxton's 4,791,737, according to the Associated Press.

The Associated Press called the race for Talarico at 11:03 p.m. ET on Tuesday, Nov. 3.

Musk's backing helped Texas Republicans spend over $159 million on TV, radio and digital ads, the Texas Tribune reported on Oct. 15.

That was twice as much as Talarico spent at the time, according to AdImpact data cited by the Tribune.

Musk publicly endorsed Paxton on Oct. 20, writing on X: "The fate of Texas and America is at stake. Vote for @KenPaxtonTX today."

On Election Day itself, Musk posted a tweet reading "Vote red today!"

That tweet was later deleted.

A screen recording posted on Wednesday, Nov. 4 by X user @Shilllin showed that clicking on the tweet produced a message saying: "The post you are trying to reply to has been deleted or is not visible to you."

An archived snapshot showed Musk's post had racked up 11.9 million views and 307,000 likes before it was deleted, according to Snopes.

Musk's net worth — estimated by Forbes at around $788 billion — took an immediate hit.

By the morning after the election, his fortune had fallen by $23.7 billion, more than 2.5% of his total wealth, as shares in SpaceX and Tesla dropped following the results, Forbes reported.

Musk's initial public reaction was a joke.

Around 1 a.m. ET on Wednesday, Nov. 4, he wrote on X that building data centers in space was looking "pretty appealing" and quipped that his "election-interfering space lasers didn't work this time."

But the stakes for Musk are far from funny.

Democrats now control Congress, which gives them the power to issue subpoenas, launch investigations and hold hearings.

Forbes reported that Musk has emerged as a major target for Democrats, who have particularly singled out his role in leading widescale government cuts through the Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE.

Rep. James Walkinshaw, D-Va., said Monday: "Elon Musk waved a chainsaw on stage and laughed while he fired public servants and gutted the services Americans rely on … He must answer for it under oath."

Democrats have already sent letters to Musk in light of reports that he cut off Ukraine's access to his Starlink service, according to CNN.

Lawmakers have also raised questions about the billions of dollars in government contracts that Musk's companies hold with the federal government, and whether there has been any impropriety, Forbes reported.

The scrutiny could directly affect Musk's businesses and his net worth, which is largely tied up in stock.

Reuters noted that Democrats' oversight could lead to increased regulation and threaten data center construction that is essential to SpaceX's growth.

Musk's Texas-based operations face additional pressure from the state level.

Incoming Texas Gov. Gina Hinojosa has long criticized the billionaire, according to Forbes.

Incoming Texas Attorney General Nathan Johnson told NBC News he intends to investigate Musk.

Musk has previously promised to hit back against any lawmakers who go after him.

On Oct. 21, he wrote on X: "Those who pick fights with me should understand that I will find out who is really pulling the strings and come for them."

One open question is whether President Trump will come to Musk's defense.

Trump rekindled his relationship with Musk after a falling out last year.

On a Monday podcast appearance, Trump said he would consider preemptively pardoning Musk if Democrats pursued legal action against him, according to Forbes.

Musk's $474 million spending spree in the 2026 cycle made him one of the largest individual political donors in U.S. history.

USA Today reported that Musk spent $445 million on Republicans.

The Des Moines Register and multiple other outlets ran stories with the same headline: "Elon Musk spent millions to help elect Republicans. Here's why it didn't work."

Common Dreams reported that after the failed effort by billionaires like Musk to buy the 2026 midterms, a call grew for a federal wealth tax.