Washington: Although US President Donald Trump has brushed Elon Musk’s plans for a new political party as “ridiculous,” the technical billionaire’s announcement emphasized the threat of the unaffected former allies for US Republicans defending Paper-Thin Congresses.
Musk’s weekend launch of the “America Party” came in the wake of Trump signing the law of a scattered domestic policy proposal that the tech mogul has slammed over the estimate that it will balloon the deficit.
Founder Tesla has been easy on political details, but is expected to target a handful of house and senate seats in next year’s midterm elections, where the sitting Republicans voted for Trump’s bill after preaching tax liability.
“[Elon] Musk’s America Party is a wild card that could increase the mid-terms in 2026, especially for Republicans, “said political analyst Matt Shoemaker, a former Republican congregation candidate and an ex-intelligence officer.
“With just majorities in Congress, Republicans must be concerned.”
Musk, the world’s richest person, had teased the idea of a new party for weeks and run an informal study of social media in June, showing 80% support among 5.6 million respondents.
Unlike former third parties, his almost unlimited resources and a talisman with a major constituency of young American men who see him as a Maverick genius and a superstar.
“Musk’s brand appeals to unaffected independent and younger, technically knowledgeable voters who might otherwise break for Republicans in Swing Districts,” Shoemaker told AFP.
Lower favoritability than Trump
With a personal fortune estimated at $ 405 billion, Musk has already demonstrated that he is willing to spend great on politics and lavish $ 277 million on Trump’s 2024 campaign.
Still, a recent trip to Wisconsin policy – he spent $ 20 million only to see his candidate for the State Supreme Court Losing Handily – has emphasized the boundaries of wealth and celebrity in politics.
And then there is the political difficulty of building support in the US heart country among voters who are not part of Musk’s Silicon Valley “Tech Bro” bubble.
Time Magazine۔s 2021 Person of the Year was once wanted by a broad cross-section of Americans, but he saw his numbers jumped after joining the Trump administration as the president’s costcutter-in-chief.
Musk’s net favorite in the latest rating published by Nate Silver, one of the most respected US Pollsters, is underwater of -18.1 compared to a slightly less subaquatic -6.6 for Trump.
“While you don’t want to paint with a wide brush, the Republican base and Maga movement is pretty inseparable in today’s political climate,” said Flavio Hickel, associate professor of political science at Washington College in Maryland.
“And their support for Trump has been unwavering despite the recent controversy. It’s hard to imagine any political project associated with musk that separates voices from individuals approving [Donald] Trump, ”he added.
Story, record of third party
While several Republicans and Democrats have switched to independent, the winner of third parties has been rare in modern American history.
The Conservative Party in the New York State in the 1970s and Farmer-Labor Party in the 1930s are the only smaller parties to win Senate Seats in the last century.
Smaller parties experienced more success in the house in the early 20th century, but have only won one seat since the 1950s.
AFP Spoke to several analysts pointing to the many obstacles thrown in front of third -party candidates trying to enter the ballot in a system designed to favor the status quo.
These include minimum requirements for signature, filing fees and other tumbling state -specific rules of age, residence and citizenship.
“At the beginning of 2024, can you the so -called ‘No Labels’ party to map a midfield for the 2024 election?” Mentioned veteran political strategist Matt Klink.
“They fizzled out in epic way.”
Analysts agree that winning seats in Congress can be a stretch, but says Musk can inflict Trump’s pain by sewing voices from vulnerable sitting Republicans or throwing cash on primary opponents of the president’s favorite candidates.
“Musk’s party does not win seats, but it can cost Republicans plenty,” said Evan Nierman, founder and CEO of the global crisis -PR company Red Banyan.
“In tight districts, even a few points that were bounded from the right could turn control,” he added.
