Elon Musk is reportedly putting the brakes on launching his new political party in order to maintain ties with prominent Republicans — especially Vice President JD Vance, whom the billionaire is eyeing to back in 2028.
Musk had vowed that his “America Party” would challenge the two-party system, but he told those close to him that he’d rather focus on his businesses than pull voters away from his Republican allies in Washington, the Wall Street Journal reported.
The Tesla CEO is particularly keen on maintaining ties with Vance, who, it has been widely speculated, will inherit the MAGA movement after President Trump completes his second term.
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Musk has told associates that forming the “America Party” would damage that relationship, according to the paper.
Musk, the richest man in the world, has expressed to those in his circle that he would financially back Vance if he made a run for the White House in 2028.
He dumped nearly $300 million on Trump and other Republican campaigns in the 2024 elections, propelling Trump to a second presidential victory.
Still, Musk hasn’t completely ruled out moving forward with the new party and is waiting to see how the 2026 midterm elections shake out, the tech mogul’s allies told the Journal.
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Musk first threatened to start a new political party last month during his public spat with Trump over his Big Beautiful Bill Act — which Musk called a “disgusting abomination” and openly criticized for its wasteful government spending.
He initially proposed targeting “2 or 3 Senate Seats and 8 to 10 House districts” in key congressional races, and said he would support primary challengers against Republicans who supported the bill.
Trump shot back that he was looking into terminating Musk’s federal contracts as the feud escalated.
Musk has made slashing the national deficit one of his political priorities. He was brought into the Trump administration to run the new cost-cutting Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) before he left to focus on his companies in May.
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Trump and Musk appear to have squashed their beef — at least for now — as Musk has refrained of late from criticizing the president or other Republican politicians.
Vance could massively benefit from Musk’s money and influence if he’s tapped to succeed Trump.
When reached for comment by the Journal, Vance’s team pointed to an interview from earlier this month with conservative outlet the Gateway Pundit in which the vice president said it would be bad for conservatives to break with MAGA and hoped Musk would “come back into the fold” by the midterm elections.
Musk, without commenting further on the Journal’s report, posted on X, “Nothing @WSJ says should ever be thought of as true.”