Democrats Sweep Key Midterm Races as Musk-Backed Republicans Lose; Tesla, SpaceX Shares Fall

Democrats won several key races in the US midterm elections on Tuesday, defeating Republicans backed by Elon Musk, who spent a record sum on the campaigns. Reports put his contributions to Republican-aligned groups between roughly $440 million and a record $474 million, with the largest share directed at Texas. Democrats won all five Senate races where Musk's America PAC spent the most, and in Texas James Talarico became the first Democrat elected to the US Senate from the state since 1988. Republicans lost the Texas Senate race and governor's office, with Democrat Gina Hinojosa defeating Governor Greg Abbott. Shares of Tesla and SpaceX fell on Wednesday, by 3.3% and 2.5% respectively. Hinojosa has called for a moratorium on new data centers, and Democrats in Congress have signaled investigations into Musk, which could complicate his plan to merge the two companies.

The right-leaning New York Post leads with the stock drop and Musk's Texas stakes, and it headlines his mocking post about "election-interfering space lasers." It emphasizes the state's data-center boom, tax incentives and Musk's roughly $880 billion net worth, framing the loss as a blow to his AI ambitions and citing Talarico and Abbott's defeat. The left-leaning Guardian and The New Republic lead with the failed investment, using "flop" and "spirals" in their headlines. The Guardian stresses the five Senate races and the $446 million figure, while The New Republic features Musk's data-center post, his limited reaction and the Hinojosa moratorium. Both sides agree on the Democratic wins, Musk's losses and the Texas results. They differ in framing: the right stresses market losses and Musk's business motives, while the left stresses political failure and Musk's public reaction. The alternative France 24 piece, which carries a browser-extension error notice, mostly matches the share-drop and spending story, citing more than $440 million.