Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) warned Monday that Elon Musk’s formation of a third party would dampen Republicans’ forecast in midterm elections.
Following weeks of disputes with President Trump regarding the tax and spending package’s changes to electric vehicle credits and the national debt increase, the tech mogul announced on Saturday that he had established the “America Party.”
“The issue is that launching another party, especially one focusing on some of the topics he discusses, could lead to the situation where, if he finances Senate and House candidates in competitive districts, it would likely result in Democrats winning all the closely contested Senate and House races,” DeSantis mentioned during a press briefing.
The Florida governor praised Musk for his efforts in reducing government spending through his work at the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) in earlier comments, but warned that creating a third party might be excessive.
“We do have a problem in the Republican Party with these D.C. congressmen. They always run saying there’s out-of-control spending, and they’re going to spend less, and they never do it,” DeSantis said.
“I think there is a lot a frustration with the gap between the rhetoric in their district, and the performance once they get into D.C. But the way you do that is expose that in a primary and show that there’s another way forward,” he added.
Trump loyalists including Steve Bannon have slammed Musk for rivaling the GOP.
But Musk has argued it’s time “for a new political party that actually cares about the people.”
However, one longtime leader of a third party said it won’t be easy for Musk to build steam ahead of 2026, when the nascent party is aiming to propel candidates into midterm campaigns.
“Many people have tried to build new political parties. Most have failed,’ Maurice Mitchell, national director of the Working Families Party, said in a statement to The Hill.
“If Musk thinks he can wave a wand and a party appears, he’s in for a rude awakening,” he added.
