Elon Musk's £61m Trump support sparks political storm
Elon Musk, the multimillionaire and founder of the electric car company Tesla, donated £61 million to Donald Trump's campaign over three months and will make several appearances in Pennsylvania in the coming days.
Pennsylvania is considered one of those states where citizens can tip the scales of support for the Republican candidate.
£61 million as a contribution from one person seems staggering—although it only slightly affects Musk's personal wealth and doesn't even make him the largest donor to Trump in this cycle. However, the involvement of the world's richest man, until recently, is not limited to contributions, and—as noted by "The New York Times" last week—is unprecedented in recent history.
The newspaper reminded us that Musk moved to Pennsylvania, the most important state from the perspective of the current election results, and invested at least £115-150 million in the Trump-supporting election committee (known as the SuperPAC called America PAC), although Trump reportedly told those around him that Musk supported him with half a billion dollars.
Additionally, the billionaire revealed that America PAC is paying people who help identify likely Trump voters in seven key states £38 per name, according to Politico, which finds it currently very difficult to separate Musk the businessman from Musk the politician. Although Trump has announced that if he wins, he will hire Musk for a high position in his administration, the billionaire's political activity may not favourably affect his financial results.
"This factor depends on another electoral district that Musk will have to worry about—Wall Street. He is the richest man in the world mainly due to Tesla's valuation, but robotaxis (autonomous taxi systems and the Cybercab vehicle) have not met investors' expectations," noted the portal, observing that after the presentation of the system, the company's shares fell by nearly 9%, which translates to a decrease in the company's value by £55 billion.
