Democratic Senate nominee James Talarico’s campaign released a new ad on Thursday accusing SpaceX CEO Elon Musk of trying to buy a U.S. Senate seat for Republican nominee Ken Paxton, according to CNBC. The video, posted on the campaign’s account on X $TWTR, tells Musk that “Texas is not for sale.”
The narrator says a single set of super PACs finances the bulk of the attack ads aimed at Talarico, and that Musk supplies the money behind those groups. "Elon wants to buy up our land, he wants to buy up our water, and now, he wants to buy his own personal U.S. senator," the narrator says. The ad adds that Paxton "will owe him everything" if Musk's money helps him win, according to CNBC.
Musk has put roughly $366 million into 40 contests this cycle, according to CNBC's calculations, more than any other individual donor in the midterms. A minimum of $189.6 million of that total went toward backing Paxton, according to CNBC. Much of the spending is concentrated in Texas, the state Musk has made home to his business headquarters and his main residence.
The ad arrived as Election Day on Nov. 3 was under two weeks away, and as Talarico and Musk traded public barbs. Musk criticized Talarico in a post on X on Wednesday and wrote on Thursday that "Talarico hates Texas and America," according to CNBC.
Talarico replied Wednesday, "There is something deeply wrong with a political system that allows one trillionaire to buy his own personal U.S. Senator," according to CNBC.
The FiftyPlusOne polling average has Talarico leading Paxton by three points as of Oct. 23, according to CNBC.
Musk has directed more than $276 million to Republican groups since July, including $10 million to Lone Star Liberty PAC, which supports Paxton's Senate bid. The $158 million he gave the Senate Leadership Fund in September ended up with Texas PAC, a group backing Paxton, according to CNBC.
Talarico's campaign has said it raised $64 million from July through September, which it described as the largest third-quarter total for any Senate candidate. Paxton disclosed that his campaign and two affiliated fundraising committees together raised $18 million in the same period.
Paxton is the Texas attorney general. He took the GOP nomination from Sen. John Cornyn in a primary contest earlier this year, according to CNBC.
Daily Brief
The essential business news, delivered fresh every morning.
Join 500,000+ readers who start their day with Quartz.
By subscribing, you agree to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy.