Republicans are largely dismissing concerns about Elon Musk’s political liability in the wake of their loss in Wisconsin, where he played a central role.
Their views so far seem to be reflected by President Trump, who has stood by Musk even as the tech billionaire has emerged as Democrats’ main foil amid sweeping anger over federal cuts made under his Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).
While some members of the GOP acknowledged that Musk was at least a factor in their loss in the Badger State, they generally played down any negative impact he had and expressed doubt he would be a significant factor in future elections. Meanwhile, some argued his involvement was a net positive.
“I think, ultimately, Musk is a value added and the way that they're trying to do some of the creative outside-the-box thinking for low-prop Republicans or unactivated voters to get them to participate in these type of elections, I think, is great press,” said Jimmy Keady, a Virginia Republican strategist working on state legislative races this cycle.
Republicans lost a critical race on Tuesday after liberal candidate Susan Crawford defeated conservative Brad Schimel for an open seat on the Wisconsin Supreme Court — a race that saw record spending in a state Supreme Court election.
The party saw several smaller bright spots on Tuesday after voters handily passed a ballot measure in Wisconsin that adds photo ID requirements for voting into the state constitution.
Republican candidates also won two special elections for House seats in Florida, though experts noted both underperformed in their districts.
While Musk’s America PAC spent in two Florida elections, it was in Wisconsin where the tech billionaire invested heavily. Both he and Trump endorsed Schimel in the race, and Musk’s super PAC alone spent close to $13 million to support the conservative candidate.
Musk also flew to Wisconsin the Sunday before the election to hand out $1 million checks to multiple voters who signed his petition against “activist judges.”
Some Republicans applauded Musk's efforts, saying he helped the party’s odds in fighting for the open court seat.
“Without Elon, the Democrat would have spent even more, maybe spent more than our side did, but it would have been even more lopsided,” said Republican strategist Dave Carney.
“I doubt there’s a candidate in the country that wouldn’t want Elon to come in and help campaign with” them, he added.
Other strategists acknowledge that Musk’s presence and Democrats’ anger around him offered Crawford a boost in the race. But they also suggest Wisconsin offered a unique case.
“On April 1, 2025, certainly the anger that Democrats have toward Musk and Trump helped propel additional votes for Crawford. That doesn't explain the whole margin,” said Wisconsin Republican strategist Mark Graul.
“I don’t think it had that massive of an effect, but certainly was part of [the] mix,” he said.
Yet Graul said he was skeptical that Musk would be as prominent of a figure down the road.
“I'm not convinced that Musk is going to be — that he's got the staying power as such a prominent issue in these races. I mean … obviously he's a very visible figure right now. I'm assuming that that's not always going to be the case,” he added.
Brandon Scholz, a former GOP strategist in Wisconsin, believed Musk played a role in hurting Republicans’ chances to keep the seat, though like many others he said the Supreme Court race was a unique circumstance.
“My personal opinion is, had Musk, like other millionaires and billionaires just put their money, put his money in, ‘Here's my $20 million,’ and then gone on to do other things, it might have been a little different,” Scholz, ...
