By Tina Teng
Published on
Tesla CEO Elon Musk said he intends to significantly reduce his political spending in future campaigns, during an interview at the Qatar Economic Forum on Tuesday.
Musk reportedly donated more than $250 million (€221 million) to support Donald Trump’s 2024 presidential campaign. When asked whether he would match that level of spending in the 2026 midterm elections, Musk replied, “I think, in terms of political spending, I’m going to do a lot less in the future.”
He was offered the role of head of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), assisting the president in cutting thousands of federal jobs. However, Musk’s political involvement has drawn backlash towards Tesla, including protests and acts of vandalism targeting its showrooms. His support for far-right European parties has also proved controversial, contributing to a steep drop in Tesla’s EV sales across the region.
Speaking at a town hall in Wisconsin in March, Musk commented, “It’s costing me a lot to be in this job,” referring to his role as a special government employee. Trump had also signalled that Musk’s government tenure may be drawing to a close. During Tesla’s Q1 earnings call, Musk stated that the time he spends on DOGE would decrease “significantly” from May onwards. On Tuesday, he reaffirmed that he would remain Tesla’s CEO for at least the next five years.
Tesla shares rebound
Tesla’s share price rose 3.6% intraday before paring gains later in the session. The world’s largest EV maker has seen its stock rebound more than 50% from a year-low in late April, helped by improving market sentiment abroad amid easing US-China trade tensions.
President Trump’s recent Middle East tour further boosted US tech stocks, as he secured deals worth over $1 trillion with three major Gulf states. Musk was among the business leaders accompanying Trump on the trip. However, Tesla’s shares are still down 12% year-to-date as of the market close on 20 May.
Asked about the decline in Tesla’s sales, Musk downplayed the concern. “It’s already turned around,” he said, referring to the share price recovery. “The stock wouldn’t be trading near all-time highs if it was not.”
While acknowledging that Europe remains Tesla’s weakest market, Musk attributed the decline to multiple factors, including tariff shocks and soft EV demand. The company reported a 20% year-on-year decline in EV revenue worldwide in the first quarter.
In April, Tesla’s European sales continued to fall significantly year-on-year: down 46% in Germany, 62% in the UK, and by more than two-thirds in Denmark, the Netherlands, and Sweden. Nevertheless, Musk highlighted stronger performance in other regions, stating, “The sales numbers at this point are strong.”
Robotaxi launch set for Austin
Despite the headwinds, investor optimism remains focused on Tesla’s upcoming Robotaxi programme. Musk confirmed on Tuesday, in an interview with CNBC, that Tesla will launch the fully autonomous vehicle services in Austin by the end of June, as originally planned. He added that Robotaxi will later expand to Los Angeles and San Francisco following its Austin debut.
Musk had earlier stated that unsupervised Full Self-Driving (FSD) technology would roll out in California and Texas by June. The Austin launch will feature the Model Y fitted with a “localised parameter set” optimised for the region.