USA Musk spends 75 million dollars on Trump's election campaign

Multi-billionaire Elon Musk is also supporting Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump financially: according to documents from the US election authority FEC, the Tesla boss has donated around 75 million US dollars (69 million euros) in tranches to the "America PAC" he founded within three months.

Musk has also recently positioned himself publicly as an important supporter of Trump. For example, he appeared alongside him at a campaign event in the state of Pennsylvania.

According to US media reports, Musk founded the "America PAC" in May - the abbreviation stands for "Political Action Committee". Musk's foundation is a so-called Super PAC, which is allowed to collect unlimited donations from individuals and companies to promote election campaigns without working directly with the candidates - in practice, however, this independence is difficult to monitor. Direct donations to candidates remain strictly regulated.

Since then, the "America PAC" has reportedly invested over 102 million US dollars (93.6 million euros) in the US election campaign, primarily in support of Trump. According to the independent transparency organization OpenSecrets, the "America PAC" is now one of the seven largest external donors in the election campaign.

A 2010 ruling by the US Supreme Court, which allowed unlimited donations to super PACs, has significantly increased the influence of major donors on both parties. Critics warn of a threat to democracy, while supporters defend this as an exercise of the right to free speech.

The money from super PACs flows primarily into election advertising, voter mobilization and, in some cases, legal action to challenge election results or influence election laws.

SDA