Mr Musk endorsed Mr Trump two days after his assassination attempt in July

Musk and Trump: How a critical relationship evolved

06 Nov 2024, 06:05 · RTE.ie

Elon Musk and Donald Trump have shifted from critics to unlikely allies over the span of one election cycle.

Mr Musk, who became a US citizen in 2002, described himself as a "moderate democrat" until recently but became a vocal critic of the party during the Biden administration.

In 2022, the Tesla and SpaceX chief executive said they had become "the party of division and hate" and confirmed he would shift to voting Republican.

However, he remained critical of the former president, tweeting in July 2022: "I don't hate the man, but it's time for Trump to hang up his hat and sail into the sunset."

Elon Musk speaking at a campaign rally at Madison Square Garden

The Tesla chief followed this up by saying there would be "too much drama" if Mr Trump tried to run for the White House again, adding: "Do we really want a bull in a china shop situation every single day!?"

The former president accused Mr Musk of lying to him about who he had voted for in the previous presidential election - a claim the tech entrepreneur denied.

And although the tech guru told a New York Times interviewer in 2023 that he would not vote for Mr Biden, he stopped short of endorsing the republican, saying: "This is definitely a difficult choice here."

Mr Musk lifted the ban on the former president's Twitter account after successfully buying the company in 2022 and changing its name to X.

The South African born businessman later formally endorsed Mr Trump two days after his assassination attempt in July.

Mr Musk went on to undertake much of the get-out-the-vote effort for Mr Trump through his political organisation, America PAC, which can raise and spend unlimited sums of money.

He was reported to have joined the former president's election night watch party at his home in Mar-a-Lago, Florida.

Mr Musk's father Errol Musk said this shift in opinion came as a result of his son seeing "common sense".

The republican nominee previously said he would create a government efficiency commission to audit the entire federal government, an idea suggested by Mr Musk - who would lead it.

When asked whether he could see his son working in government the father of the SpaceX chief said: "I certainly see Elon very much involved with Trump in getting the United States back to the country that it was and away from the insanity that has been ruling it in recent times."