The battle for one of Texas’ U.S. Senate seats is now the most expensive race for an elected office other than that of the president, according to an analysis from AdImpact.
Between the general election and primaries, a combined $573.2 million has been spent to advertise for either Ken Paxton or James Talarico.
However, half of that spend has not been driven by donations to the candidates, but by political action committees, or PACs.
Super PACs cannot be tied to any singular candidate, but unlike candidates, have no rules regarding the size of donations they may accept.
Experts said this allows for wealthier donors to have a greater impact on elections.
No one has had a greater impact on this election than Elon Musk, who has donated at least $168 million to political action committees supporting Paxton, according to CNN reporting.
Musk’s donations have helped close a dramatic funding gap between Paxton, who has raised $22 million, and Talarico, who is the top fundraiser of the 2026 midterms with $146 million, according to federal election campaign spending data.
Stay up to date with Texas U.S. Senate election results on Tuesday at the link here.
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