Elon Musk wants to create a new political party. Building rockets may be easier

CNN

3 days ago

Elon Musk has started multiple successful companies that have accomplished incredible technological feats. His latest ambition may be significantly more difficult to achieve: starting a new American political party for the masses.
Citing his disappointment in President Donald Trump and his massively expensive domestic policy bill, Musk said he would form the 'America party' the day after the 'Big, Beautiful Bill' passes, if Congress approves it. Musk has called Democrats and Republicans the 'uniparty' because government deficits have risen dramatically under administrations and Congresses controlled by both parties. He says he wants to build a fiscally conservative party that reins in spending – although he's presented few other details of what the party's platform might be.
Experts in campaign finance and political science say there's a reason no third party has ever truly successfully challenged America's two-party system: It is financially and legally difficult to create a new party, and voters and candidates are hesitant to join.
'Third-party movements in the US have generally arisen out of some sort of set of deep-seated grievances,' Emory University political science professor Alan Abramowitz told CNN. 'It was not just some wealthy person who's decided they wanted to start a third party.'
It's not clear how much if any preparation has been done to stand up the party. A spokesperson for Musk's political action committee, America PAC, declined to comment.
A senior White House official brushed off Musk's criticism of the bill. 'No one really cares what he says anymore,' the source said.
Two Republicans close to the White House said that it was also unclear how Musk's threats might play out in the midterm elections.
'Of course, members don't want to be primaried,' one of the sources said. 'It's unclear if he's actually going to get involved. A few weeks ago he apologized and called Trump.'
Musk may be the richest person on Earth, but he could also encounter some financial resistance himself. Former DOGE adviser and Trump supporter James Fishback said he is launching his own super PAC to counter Musk's money in congressional races.
Fishback, who runs an investment firm, said he will provide $1 million in initial funding to the super PAC, which will be called FSD PAC, an abbreviation for Full Support for Donald.
He told CNN that the super PAC will work to back Trump's agenda 'and against anyone who threatens to sabotage that agenda,' including Musk.
American political parties are governed by laws and rules not just from the Federal Election Commission but also from the states, including around which parties can appear on ballots.
'The system is sort of set up to almost make it impossible for third parties to be successful,' Abramowitz said.
Funding a new party has its own hurdles. The McCain-Feingold Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2022 set strict limits on donations to political parties. The current limit is just under $450,000 spread across different party purposes. Musk would need thousands of co-donors to help him fund his party, said Lee Goodman, an attorney and former chair of the FEC.
'One very wealthy individual cannot capitalize a new national political party, the way he might start a business, because of federal contribution limits,' Goodman told CNN. 'The prospect of a wealthy founder seed funding a national party to participate in federal elections around the country is not feasible in the current regulatory system.'
Bradley Smith, another former FEC chair and who is now a law professor at Capital University Law School, said there are some ways around the current regulations.
'There is some case law suggesting that some of the organizational activities of a party and starting a party right can be funded with larger contributions, until it actually qualifies for party status under the election commission regulations,' Smith said, but he noted it's complex and difficult to do.
'You can fund super PACs all you want. But you can't fund a political party, as a strange part of American law,' he added.
Super PACs are not legally allowed to coordinate spending with parties or candidates, although previous candidates have tested these limits, as nothing prohibits coordination when the information is shared publicly. 'Coordination has, in fact, become commonplace,' the nonpartisan Campaign Legal Center has said.
Then there's getting on the actual ballots. States have different rules, such as requiring a certain number of signatures.
'It would take years and might require changes in laws around the country that currently favor two major political parties,' Goodman noted
Beyond the legal and logistical hurdles, there's convincing candidates to join and voters to cast their ballots for them.
Despite varying approval levels, party loyalties remain strong, Abramowitz said, especially among Republicans, who have coalesced around Trump.
'The biggest obstacle is just that it's very difficult to convince people to vote for a third-party candidate because the argument is always 'you're wasting your vote. You're voting for someone who has no chance of winning elections,'' Abramowitz said.
Candidates may also be wary. Democrats are unlikely to run under the America Party because 'Democrats hate Elon Musk,' Abramowitz said. And Republicans 'have clearly shown that they're much more attached to Donald Trump than they are to Elon Musk.'
Republicans highly approve of Trump, according to CNN Chief Data Analyst Harry Enten's aggregation of available polling data. Some 90 precent of Republicans approve of Trump's performance thus far in this presidency, and he is doing better in approval ratings five months into the presidency than former Republican presidents. And in 96% of the 2024 primary races where Trump endorsed, those candidates won.
If creating a new political party proves too difficult, Musk could still hold a lot of sway through his super PAC, to which he can send unlimited funds. That PAC can then support independent candidates, who could also have an easier time getting on ballots.
'Independent spending, individually or via a super PAC, remains the most legal and practical mechanism for a wealthy individual to have a say in national politics,' Goodman said.
CNN's Kristen Holmes and Fredreka Schouten contributed reporting.