Politics

Filings show Musk gave $158 million to Paxton-backing super PACs

State filings show Musk gave $5 million to Abbott's reelection bid, and a judge ordered release of 1,400 pages of Abbott's correspondence with Musk.

Updated Oct 30, 2026 · 14:16 UTC2 reports

The short version

Federal Election Commission filings show Elon Musk has given at least $158 million to super PACs supporting Ken Paxton's Senate bid.[Wired]
State campaign filings show Musk gave $5 million to Governor Greg Abbott's reelection campaign, making him Abbott's largest donor.[Wired]
A judge ruled that Abbott illegally obstructed state representative Gina Hinojosa's access to his correspondence with Musk and ordered 1,400 pages released.[Wired]
Texas legislators have called for an audit of $110 million in Starlink grants, while the Comptroller reported a $1.66 billion tax break for a proposed Musk chip plant.[Wired]

Federal Election Commission filings show Musk has given at least $158 million to super PACs supporting Ken Paxton's Senate bid.[Wired]
State campaign filings show Musk donated $5 million to Governor Greg Abbott's reelection bid, making him Abbott's largest donor.[Wired]
A judge ruled that Abbott illegally obstructed Gina Hinojosa's right to inspect 1,400 pages of his correspondence with Musk and ordered their release.[Wired]
Fox News reports that Republican outside groups have poured more than $200 million into Texas to support Paxton, nearly all of it bankrolled by Musk.[Fox News]
MAGA Inc., Donald Trump's principal super PAC, has spent $33.7 million on ads backing Paxton, according to AdImpact.[Fox News]
Texas legislators called for an audit after the Texas Broadband Development Office allocated $110 million in grants to Musk's Starlink.[Wired]
The Texas Comptroller announced that a proposed Musk chip manufacturing facility in Grimes County received a $1.66 billion tax break, and SpaceX received about $30 million in state grants.[Wired]
Musk moved Tesla's corporate headquarters to Austin in 2021 and SpaceX's headquarters to Starbase, Texas, in 2024.[Wired]

It is unknown whether the requested Starlink grant audit will proceed; the reporting describes only legislators' call for one.[Wired]
The reporting does not establish that the donations influenced state decisions; critics' concerns about favors remain allegations.[Wired]

Outlet counts describe coverage, not independent confirmation. Reports may share a wire service or original source.