Elon Musk Faces Congressional Inquiries and Financial Setbacks After Midterm Betting Spree Fails

Billionaire Elon Musk poured more than $445 million into Republican candidates, political action committees, and outside groups during the midterm elections, making him the top donor of the cycle and one of the largest political spenders in U.S. History. Yet, after sweeping Democratic victories gave the party control of both the House and the Senate on Tuesday, most of the candidates Musk backed lost their races. Now, the Tesla and SpaceX chief executive faces potential congressional investigations into his vast federal contracts and his previous role leading President Trump’s Department of Government Efficiency.

Federal Contracts and Foreign Contacts Under the Lens

Democratic lawmakers say their primary focus will be whether Musk used his position within the Trump administration to benefit his own corporate empire. According to analysis from the campaign-finance tracker OpenSecrets and the legal advocacy nonprofit Democracy Defenders Fund, Musk’s firms secured at least $6.3 billion in government contracts during the four months he headed DOGE. Since stepping down from that post, he has picked up at least another $10 billion in federal contracts. “The DOGE chickens are coming home to roost,” Rep. James Walkinshaw (D-Va.) wrote on X. “Elon Musk waved a chainsaw on stage and laughed while firing public servants and gutting the services Americans rely on. Then he lied to the American people about the savings. He must answer for it under oath.”

Foreign policy decisions involving Musk are also drawing scrutiny. Democratic Sen. Chris Coons of Delaware posted on X that Musk’s ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin represent “One more thing to add to the list of questions for Musk when I subpoena him.”

In California, U.S. Rep. Mike Levin raised concerns over Musk’s satellite internet service, Starlink, and its military counterpart, Starshield. Levin noted that Musk restricted Ukraine’s access to Starlink—which powers vital civilian infrastructure and frontline drone operations—just days after Trump eased Russian sanctions and began purchasing Russian diesel in October. Legal experts note that Musk’s official actions could carry criminal liability. Richard Painter, former chief White House ethics lawyer in the George W. Bush administration, pointed out that Musk operated as a part-time special government employee while leading DOGE. Under federal law, such officials are barred from participating in matters that affect their personal financial interests. “SpaceX is a big contractor and gets a lot of money from NASA and the Department of Defense,” Painter said. “If [Musk] touched anything that he knew would have an impact on SpaceX, he would’ve committed a crime.”

Texas Rejects Musk’s High-Stakes Political Campaign

Musk focused much of his political firepower on Texas, pouring more than $200 million—and at least $225 million overall according to OpenSecrets—into the state. Texas serves as the operational hub for his companies, hosting Tesla’s headquarters and Giga Texas data center in Austin, X outside Austin, SpaceX rocket facilities in southern Texas, and the headquarters of Neuralink and The Boring Company. Plans were also announced in August for a $16.8 billion SpaceXAI semiconductor fabrication project in the state. Musk’s millions funded high-profile Republicans, including Gov. Greg Abbott’s reelection bid and Ken Paxton’s U.S. Senate campaign. However, Democrats won every statewide office on Tuesday, with James Talarico defeating Paxton. Wall Street reacted swiftly to the electoral shifts. Even as broader financial markets climbed on Wednesday, SpaceX shares slipped nearly 4% and Tesla stock fell 3%. Musk responded publicly to the election outcome on Tuesday night, posting on X: “Guess my election-interfering space lasers didn’t work this time,” accompanied by a shrug emoji.