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Elon Musk has had a rough 24 hours.
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The billionaire spent at least $20 million on a failed Wisconsin candidate.
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Tesla reported poor sales numbers, but its stock surged after a report said he may step back from DOGE.
Elon Musk has had a roller coaster of a day.
On Tuesday night, Musk’s favored conservative candidate failed to win a Wisconsin Supreme Court election despite the billionaire and his super PAC dropping at least $15.5 million on the race.
On Wednesday morning, Musk received more bad news. Tesla reported first-quarter deliveries were well below analysts’ estimates. Shares in Musk’s signature company are down roughly 30% this year.
Musk chose this path himself. He has enthusiastically touted the White House DOGE office, even as polling has indicated his popularity has plummeted. In Wisconsin, polling found that Musk was more unpopular among Republicans than President Donald Trump.
But somewhat remarkably, the double whammy of bad news preceded a win for Musk. A report from Politico, citing three unnamed Trump insiders, said the president’s inner circle was preparing for Musk to step back from his role at the White House. Tesla’s stock bounced back from early losses and ended the day up 5%.
The White House later disputed Politico’s report.
“This ‘scoop’ is garbage,” White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said. “Elon Musk and President Trump have both publicly stated that Elon will depart from public service as a special government employee when his incredible work at DOGE is complete.”
Democrats hammered Musk throughout the Wisconsin race. He decided to go to the state directly, wearing a Cheesehead hat in Green Bay and mugging for the cameras as he handed out millions in giveaways to supporters. (Musk first said the $1 million checks were for voters but then said they were for select Wisconsinites that his political organization wanted as spokespeople.)
The Tesla CEO also chose to join Trump’s administration, juggling the responsibilities of leading his automaker, SpaceX, and xAI. Initially, it was thought that Musk would co-lead Trump’s “Department of Government Efficiency” outside the government.
It didn’t take long for his proximity to Trump to blow back on his companies, namely Tesla. There have been protests at Tesla dealerships around the globe. Some protesters have resorted to violence, with one accused of firebombing a Tesla dealership.
Wednesday’s delivery numbers seemed to confirm fears that Musk’s unpopularity is actively harming his flagship company. Tesla reported a 13% decline in deliveries in the first quarter compared with last year.
