Nowadays, it has become impossible for people to avoid expressing their political affiliations, even when at work. What do you do when all the signals from your boss and colleagues suggest otherwise? That’s exactly what’s going on at some of Elon Musk’s companies. Well, Musk himself has been funding Trump for the upcoming presidential race but his employees, Tesla, SpaceX, and X (previously Twitter) have been donating more to Trump’s opponent Kamala Harris.
Employees Walk the Talk
OpenSecrets, a nonprofit that covers campaign finances, show that workers at Musk companies are voting with their wallets. When it comes to Tesla, staff has donated approximately 42,824$ to Kamala Harris ahead of the same amount that was donated to Trump’s campaign which was at 24,840$. Similarly, the SpaceX employees have donated $34,526 to Harris against $7,652 to Trump. It is especially apparent at X, formerly Twitter, where the contrast is even starker. Harris has raised over $13,000 from donations while Trump has less than $500.
Musk: A Surprising Endorsement
However, this employee support for Harris would not be rather fascinating if it were not for the fact that Elon Musk has voted for Trump. This is the same man who campaigned for Joe Biden in the 2020 election and now he is supporting the former Republican President. While Musk is not new to expressing his views on twitter, he has been more vocal recently on his support for Trump and has even referred to certain progressive ideas as a “woke-mind virus”. Well, only Musk can pull off something like that.
So, what’s the deal? How come Musk’s workers are supporting Harris when their employer is supporting Trump? Well, one possible explanation might be for example, majority of Musk employees work in the area of California and this state votes massively for Democrats. As stated by Ross Gerber, CEO of Gerber Kawasaki Wealth and Investment Management, and a Tesla shareholder, this geographical factor could be an explanation. It’s like he lives in two different worlds – Musk is doing one thing, but the entire neighborhood is very much on the other side.
California vs. Texas
And speaking of locations, the recent actions of Musk have brought even more political discussion with them. This year in May he posted that he would be relocating the headquarters of both X and SpaceX from California to Texas. Why? Musk was displeased with gender-identity law in California, stating it as the “last straw.” This decision may have a few big problems, however. As Gerber has noted the move out of California could mean that they will be cutting themselves from a lot of talent.
It is quite amusing though since Musk has been rather vocal on certain issues. However, his political transformation did not affect his employees’ loyalty to their political choices: choosing Harris as their preferred candidate. Well, it only proves that even in such industries like Tesla, SpaceX, and X, there are conflicts but that is alright.
What Implications Does This Have for the Future?
Therefore, how does this political divide affect Musk’s companies? Actually, the fact is, these donations are not significant in the context of political fundraising, and yet they do paint a picture of the corporate culture within those organizations. People have the right to vote for whoever they want, and it seems many are voting for Harris against Trump.
