Just four months ago, Elon Musk declared he wouldn’t be “donating money to either” candidate for president. Now, he’s reportedly committing to donate $45 million each month to a super political action committee supporting former President Donald Trump.
The Wall Street Journal, citing sources familiar with the matter, reports that Musk will back America PAC, a group established in June focusing on voter registration and other “get out the vote” activities. Musk is expected to start his donations to the committee in July. In total, Musk could contribute around $180 million to the PAC.
This marks the culmination of Musk’s public shift towards right-wing politics and signifies his growing connection to Trump. Despite the former president and his running mate’s shared skepticism towards electric vehicles, Musk formally endorsed Trump on Saturday.
“I fully endorse President Trump and hope for his rapid recovery,” Musk stated on X, just hours after an assassination attempt on Trump.
Over recent months, Musk has reportedly built a closer relationship with the former president, engaging in conversations with him “several times a month” on topics such as the U.S. Space Force, which Trump established, and immigration. Musk has also advised Trump on matters like EVs, cryptocurrency policy, and a potential advisory role if Trump secures a second term in November, according to Bloomberg News. However, Musk has denied these reports.
Axios reports that Musk, former Fox News host Tucker Carlson, and “Paypal mafia” member David Sachs advocated for Trump to choose J.D. Vance as his running mate on Monday. Vance, a Republican Senator from Ohio, is a former venture capitalist with connections to Peter Thiel, co-founder of Palantir and Paypal.
As of June 30, America PAC has received about $8.75 million from donors, most of which has already been spent. The group is supported by several significant backers with backgrounds in private equity or venture capital.
Antonio Gracias, founder and CEO of Valor Equity Partners and an early institutional investor in Tesla, is one of America PAC’s biggest donors, contributing $1 million. Doug Leone, a Sequoia Capital partner; Alliance Resource Partners CEO Joe Craft; and Palantir co-founder Joe Lonsdale’s Lonsdale Enterprises have each donated $1 million. Jimmy John Liautaud, founder and former chairman of Jimmy John’s, also contributed $1 million. In 2020, Liautaud donated $212,000 to Trump’s presidential campaign.
Other notable donors include billionaire Winklevoss twins and Sequoia’s Shaun Maguire. Following Trump’s conviction on 34 felony counts in May, Maguire declared he had donated $300,000 to Trump and his affiliates.