Musk's America Party could split Republicans, fear Trump allies
On Saturday, the 54-year-old Tesla boss announced he was setting up the America Party after his social media followers backed the idea in an online poll.
Mr Musk, who until recently was a key Trump ally, said the party would adopt a 'laser focus' on winning a handful of Senate seats and House districts in a bid to sway key votes on legislation.
'Given the razor-thin legislative margins, that would be enough to serve as the deciding vote on contentious laws, ensuring that they serve the true will of the people,' he posted on X.
On Sunday, Musk responded to a post about how he could 'break the two-party stranglehold' by writing: 'Not hard tbh [to be honest].'
Not hard tbh https://t.co/pQZXgsHQVy
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) July 6, 2025
Laura Loomer, a leading Maga influencer who is close to Mr Trump, warned the move could trigger Republican defections and split the party's base.
'I predict Tucker Carlson, Marjorie Taylor Greene and Thomas Massie will join the new 'America Party' to spite President Trump,' she posted on X.
Raheem Kassam, another prominent Maga supporter and former adviser to Nigel Farage, threatened to ditch Mr Musk's X platform if its algorithm skewed against Mr Trump.
'If Musk weaponizes X against Maga, I'm leaving this account as an automated news feed and shifting to TruthSocial tbh,' he wrote.
Mr Musk said his decision to form the party stemmed from opposition to Mr Trump's new economic Bill, which includes tax cuts for the wealthy, significant reductions to Medicaid and the removal of subsidies for electric vehicles.
The announcement follows the revival of his public feud with Mr Trump, who threatened to cancel the Tesla tycoon's government contracts and deport him back to South Africa.
'Elmo the Mook'
Steve Bannon, Mr Trump's former chief strategist, questioned whether Mr Musk could even form a new party, given he was born abroad, and also repeated calls for him to be deported.
'The foul, the buffoon. Elmo the Mook, formerly known as Elon Musk, Elmo the Mook. He's today, in another smear, and this –only a foreigner could do this – think about it, he's got up on, he's got up on Twitter right now, a poll about starting an America Party, a non-American starting an America Party,' Mr Bannon said on his War Room podcast.
He added: 'No, brother, you're not an American. You're a South African. We take enough time and prove the facts of that, you should be deported because it's a crime of what you did – among many.'
Third parties have typically underperformed in US elections due to the country's first-past-the-post system, which favours Democrats and Republicans. Previous third-party presidential candidates like Ross Perot and Ralph Nader made headlines but little headway.
But Mr Musk hopes that by securing a small number of Senate and House seats in next year's midterms, the America Party could act as kingmaker on tight legislative votes.
Third party 'a mistake'
Both main parties have struggled in recent years to push through laws because of internal dissent. This week, Mr Trump's 'big, beautiful Bill' met resistance from within, with Mr Massie and Brian Fitzpatrick voting against it in the House, before it eventually passed.
Democrats have faced similar challenges, notably when Senator Joe Manchin blocked key parts of Joe Biden's climate legislation in 2022.
Political strategists suggest Mr Musk's party could most damage Republicans.
Dafydd Townley, a US politics expert, told Newsweek: 'Third parties do not tend to have a long lifetime in American politics.'
He added that the America Party 'would likely split the Republican vote, potentially resulting in a Democrat-dominated House of Representatives, at least in the short term, due to the winner-takes-all electoral system'.
Mr Musk's move has also attracted attention from existing third parties. Steven Nekhaila, chairman of the Libertarian National Committee, urged Musk to join their party instead.
'Making a new third party would be a mistake,' he told Politico. 'The Libertarian Party is the most set-up party to be the dissident subversive party.'
Anthony Scaramucci, Mr Trump's former communications chief but now a vocal critic of the president, said he wanted to meet Mr Musk to discuss the new venture.
The unveiling of the America Party has damaged Tesla, which has suffered in the stock market ever since Mr Musk entered the political fray and backed Mr Trump's re-election bid with hundreds of millions of dollars in support.
Azoria Partner, an investment firm, said it would postpone plans to invest in Tesla and encouraged its board to rein in Mr Musk.
'I encourage the board to meet immediately and ask Elon to clarify his political ambitions and evaluate whether they are compatible with his full-time obligations to Tesla as CEO,' James Fishback, Azoria's chief executive, said.
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