With the United States’ Two Major Political Institutions Struggling to Find Respective Working Consensus Balances, a Third Major Political Party May Actually Break America’s Democratic Process.
Musk Announces Forming Of ‘America Party’
SUQIAN, CHINA – JULY 07: In this photo illustration, the sign of the ‘America Party’ is displayed on a smartphone screen on July 7, 2025, in Suqian, Jiangsu Province of China. Elon Musk said he’s carrying out his threat to form a new political party after his fissure with President Donald Trump, announcing the America Party in response to the president’s sweeping tax cuts law. (Photo illustration by VCG/VCG via Getty Images)
Jade Lopez, CRDN
August 22, 2025
Let’s start with a timeline leading up to Elon’s formation of the America Party.
In November 2020, Joe Biden won the presidential election against his opponent, Donald Trump.
Elon Musk quietly and indirectly congratulates Biden by saying, “Well, he’s the President-elect, so he’s got to be the guy.” In a December 2020 interview with the Wall Street Journal.
In 2021, Musk publicly criticized the Biden administration for failing to mention Tesla in electric vehicle-centered press events. This snowballs into a more outspoken disdain of how the Democratic party was operating.
In October 2022, Musk obtained Twitter, renamed X, and stated he can “no longer support the Democrats.” With another statement saying he’ll be voting Republican going forward.
In 2023, Musk began persistently speaking out against the “woke culture” that is our government and how it overregulates the nation.
This leads to him engaging with conservative and right-wing social media influencers and politicians. He then establishes the American PAC.
At the start of 2024, Musk began his meetings (very informal at this time) with Donald Trump and his administration. In March of that year, he publicly endorsed Trump on X. This went from simple posts promoting the president, to extreme funding (280 million in 2024) and political meetings on his social media platform with extreme MAGA guests.
After Trump’s win in November 2024, Musk was appointed as an informal advisor to the newly formed Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), a role which focused on budget cuts and bureaucracy reform.
The DOGE initiative, designed to enhance federal bureaucracy, was controversial and often criticized for its overreach and lack of transparency.
In the beginning months of this year, Musk’s proposed spending and tech-centered reforms began clashing with Trump’s agenda, which grew into a small private feud (at first). By June of this year, the battle became very public.
Trump mocked Musk on Truth Social, and Musk replied on X, calling Trump “undisciplined” and “unserious” about real reform. This led to the America PAC halting donations to Trump-aligned groups.
Just this month, Musk officially announced the launch of the America Party. He declares the party’s mission is to support fiscal conservatives and pro-innovative centrists, with emphasis on a “surgical strategy” for swing districts.
The party has been described by Musk as a centrist, fiscally conservative, and innovation-driven entity. Its platform appears tailored to appeal to moderates disillusioned by partisan extremes.
However, polls show weak early support for the America Party, about 5–17% of Americans say they would vote for it and. 77% have stated they would not join, revealing a significant trust gap between Musk and the broader electorate.
Unlike traditional third-party bids aiming for the presidency, Musk’s strategy is more tactical: he intends to focus on a handful of legislative races, two to three Senate contests, and roughly eight to ten House of Representatives seats, where his party could act as a legislative swing force.
The launch of the party has already sent ripples through both political and financial spheres. Musk’s increased political involvement has raised concerns within his companies. SpaceX, for instance, issued cautionary notices to investors highlighting Musk’s political pursuits as a potential “distraction risk” to company operations.
Similarly, Tesla’s stock experienced a notable dip following the announcement, reflecting market anxieties over the billionaire’s expanding political footprint.
Some see the party as doomed to fail, like many third-party efforts before it (Libertarian, Independent, etc.). Others argue that even a narrowly focused, well-funded political force could hold the balance of power in Congress, reshaping legislative negotiations and nudging the system toward greater plurality or even reform.
Musk’s formation of his new party represents a broad challenge to political norms and a reflection of growing dissatisfaction with traditional parties.
The party poses significant concerns due to its reliance on the personal influence and wealth of a single billionaire rather than grassroots democratic support.
It lacks a clear ideological foundation beyond Musk’s personal grievances and policy preferences, which we’ve seen are very right and conservative-based, and its power is held in the palms of the ultra-rich. The effort may divide the political landscape further, pushing polarization without offering a representative alternative to the current broken system we have in place.