WASHINGTON: Billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk has spent approximately $446 million supporting candidates backed by President Donald Trump in the US midterm elections, according to a report.
The BBC reported that overall spending on the US midterm elections is estimated to reach nearly $12 billion, making it the most expensive midterm election campaign in the country's history.
Documents filed with the Federal Election Commission show that a large portion of Musk's contributions went to America PAC, the political action committee he founded, and other groups supporting Republican candidates.
According to reports, Musk's biggest financial contribution has gone to the Texas Senate race, where Republican candidate Ken Paxton is facing Democratic candidate James Talarico.
The political group established by Musk has spent more than $33 million on the contest.
Financial support from major donors in the US election campaign has also reached record levels. Besides Musk, billionaire donors George Soros and Michael Bloomberg are among the prominent figures contributing to political groups.
A significant portion of election spending is being directed toward television advertisements, online campaigns, political rallies and voter outreach activities.
On the other hand, spending on the US midterm elections is projected to reach a record $11.93 billion, making the 2026 campaign season the most expensive midterm election cycle in American history.
According to the global news agency, political spending watchdog OpenSecrets has forecast that campaign expenditures this year will surpass the records set in all previous midterm elections.
The estimate shows that the Democratic Party is expected to spend approximately $5.52 billion on election campaigns, while the ruling Republican Party's spending is projected to reach $5.12 billion.
Independent candidates and outside political groups are expected to spend another $1.3 billion, taking total election-related expenditures to nearly $12 billion.
The projected spending represents an increase of approximately one-third compared with the 2022 midterm elections, when total campaign expenditures reached $8.94 billion.
According to historical figures, only the 2020 and 2024 US presidential elections recorded higher campaign spending, with expenditures reaching approximately $15 billion in each election cycle.
