Elon Musk has donated $5 million to support Vivek Ramaswamy’s campaign for Ohio governor, boosting his political spending ahead of the closely watched 2026 US midterm elections, Bloomberg reported.
The contribution comes months after Musk and Ramaswamy ended their partnership in the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), the initiative they launched after Donald Trump’s 2024 election victory to reduce government bureaucracy and improve efficiency.
According to Federal Election Commission (FEC) filings released on Wednesday, Musk also gave less than $500,000 to America PAC, the political action committee he founded. The latest donations take his total political spending in the current midterm cycle to at least $90 million.
From DOGE partners to political allies
Ramaswamy, a biotech entrepreneur and former Republican presidential candidate, is contesting the Ohio governor’s election against Democrat Amy Acton. Earlier, he teamed up with Musk to launch DOGE. The initiative promised to cut government waste, modernise outdated systems and reduce unnecessary regulations across federal agencies.
During its early months, DOGE claimed several successes. It recommended ending duplicate government programmes and helped speed up procurement reforms at NASA and the Department of Defence.
However, differences soon emerged over how quickly reforms should be carried out, how deeply spending should be cut and how the project should be presented to the public. Resistance from within Washington also began making headlines
By the spring of 2026, the partnership had ended.
Musk later described the experience as “intensely productive but ultimately finite,” while Ramaswamy said it had prepared him to provide stronger executive leadership at the state level.
Despite going their separate ways, the split remained friendly, with neither side publicly criticising the other. Musk’s latest donation is being seen as a sign that he still supports Ramaswamy’s political vision.
After stepping away from the DOGE initiative, Ramaswamy shifted his focus to state politics, campaigning on promises of limited government, pro-business policies and innovation.
The contest has now become a neck-and-neck race. The Cook Political Report recently changed its rating of the race from “Lean Republican” to “Toss-Up,” suggesting either candidate could win.
Musk remains a major Republican donor
Although Musk has already spent heavily this election cycle, it is still well below the $290 million he donated to help Donald Trump and other Republican candidates during the 2024 presidential election.
That made him the biggest political donor of the campaign.
Throughout the 2024 race, Musk actively campaigned for Trump, appearing at rallies wearing a black MAGA hat, speaking at Trump’s Madison Square Garden event and joining him at Mar-a-Lago on election night.
After Trump’s victory, Musk said America PAC would continue working instead of becoming inactive after the election.
“Normally, PACs go somewhat dormant after a big election,” Musk wrote on X. “@America PAC is going to do the opposite and keep grinding, increasing Republican registrations in key districts around the country, in preparation for special elections and the midterms.”
America PAC yet to launch new ads
So far in the 2025-26 election cycle, Musk has donated around $50 million to America PAC.
However, according to advertising tracker AdImpact, the PAC has not spent money on advertising this year. Meta’s ad library also shows that America PAC currently has no active campaigns on Facebook or Instagram.
Musk’s financial strength has grown significantly since SpaceX went public last month, briefly making him the world’s first trillionaire.
Despite his growing influence, Musk’s public image remains divided.
A poll conducted by The Economist and YouGov in mid-June found that 53% of respondents viewed him unfavourably, while 39% had a favourable opinion following SpaceX’s successful public listing.
Donations across several Republican campaigns
Besides backing Ramaswamy, Musk has also donated $10 million each to the Senate Leadership Fund and the Congressional Leadership Fund.
Earlier this year, he contributed $10 million to the Fight for Kentucky PAC, which supported Republican Senate candidate Nate Morris before Morris withdrew from the race after Donald Trump urged him to step aside.
In Texas, where Musk has lived since 2020, he has donated $500,000 to the Texas Senate Leadership Fund, $2 million to Texans for Lawsuit Reform, and $1 million to the Judicial Fairness PAC.
With the 2026 midterm elections approaching, Musk continues to play a major role in Republican fundraising.