Democrats retake Congress as Musk's $474 million fails to save Republicans

Democrats take both chambers

Democrats regained control of the House of Representatives and the Senate in the midterm elections held on Tuesday, 3 November. Reports published on Wednesday, 4 November, describe the result as a defeat for Donald Trump and the Republican Party, which lost control of both chambers of Congress. Texas and Kansas were named among the biggest surprises of the vote, alongside Iowa, Ohio, North Carolina, South Carolina and Maine. In Iowa, Josh Turek beat Representative Ashley Hinson, while Adam Hamilton defeated Senator Roger Marshall in Kansas. In Ohio, Sherrod Brown beat Senator Jon Husted, and Roy Cooper won a vacant seat in North Carolina.

Musk's spending meets a Texas defeat

Elon Musk spent at least $474 million on the elections, the largest sum ever given by a single individual donor in a US electoral cycle. Much of that money went to Texas, where Musk moved in 2020 and where Tesla, SpaceX and X now have their headquarters. Musk may have spent more than $220 million supporting Ken Paxton, the former Texas attorney general. Paxton lost to Democrat James Talarico, 37, who becomes the first Democratic senator Texas has sent to Washington in 36 years. In the governor's race, Democrat Gina Hinojosa beat Republican Greg Abbott. Hinojosa backs a local moratorium on building AI data centres, a project Musk actively supports in the state, so her win complicates his business plans.

Trump Media and Musk's reaction

Shares of Trump Media & Technology Group fell more than 13% in early trading on Wednesday, 4 November, to about $5.10, an all-time low. The stock is down more than 60% this year, and the company runs the Truth Social platform where Trump often posts. Trump is the sole beneficiary of a trust that owns 41% of the company, roughly 114 million shares managed by his eldest son, according to financial filings. At current prices that stake is worth roughly $600 million, down from nearly $4 billion in 2024. Musk wrote on X that his space lasers had not worked in the election this time, and that data centres in space now look especially attractive. He also expressed concern about a possible halt to construction of AI data centres.

White House and Republican recriminations

The White House posted an image of Trump on Wednesday morning, captioned 'PSA: Trump is still your president', after communications director Steven Cheung posted a similar message earlier that day. Trump said he was somewhat surprised by the result, argued that his name was not on the ballot, and claimed that he would have won by a landslide had he been. He said he expected to work with Democrats and would use his veto power if he considered it right. In a Tuesday evening interview, Trump also assured that he would not abuse that power. JD Vance wrote on X that many voters who backed Trump and Vance in 2024 voted for Democrats in 2026, and that the economic message did not land strongly enough. Vance also cited the war in Iran as a reason for the loss, and some Republicans now blame Trump and want the party to distance itself from him.

Spending and what comes next

AdImpact projects midterm advertising spending at about $11.6 billion, more than in the 2024 presidential race. OpenSecrets, which tracks political money, puts the 2026 cycle at $11.9 billion, including hundreds of millions of dollars for Democrats. Texas alone accounts for nearly half a billion dollars in spending. Technology sector donors make up about a third of the top contributors, according to the reporting. Republicans now face a second half of Trump's term with less power to shape decisions, and the veto question is likely to define the coming months.

AdImpact projection11.6

OpenSecrets, 2026 cycle11.9

AdImpact projection

11.6 billion USD

OpenSecrets, 2026 cycle

11.9 billion USD

Data from the article text