After topping 2024’s donor list, Elon Musk said he’d do ‘a lot less.’ Since then, he’s given more than George Soros has personally in his lifetime

In May 2025, Elon Musk said he was pulling back from political spending.

“I think in terms of political spending, I’m going to do a lot less in the future,” Musk said in an interview with Bloomberg at the Qatar Economic Forum. “I think I’ve done enough.”

He then left room to change course: “Well, if I see a reason to do political spending in the future, I will do it,” he said. “I don’t currently see a reason.”

He had just finished the 2024 election cycle as the country’s biggest political donor, according to OpenSecrets. That year, he gave $291.5 million, all to Republicans. The next-largest donor, Timothy Mellon, gave $197 million.

In the 17 months since, Musk has given $427.5 million to federal political committees, according to a Fortune analysis of Federal Election Commission filings through Oct. 14. That’s nearly $200 million more than George Soros, the man Musk has claimed “astroturfed” anti-Tesla protests. Soros, the Democratic megadonor, has given personally $243.2 million to federal committees in 47 years of FEC records.

How much has Musk contributed?

Most of Musk’s money........

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