Elon Musk listens as reporters ask President Donald Trump and South Africa President Cyril Ramaphosa questions in the Oval Office at the White House in May. If Musk is to go through with his plan to develop his new America Party, he\u2019ll have to navigate a patchwork of state-level ballot rules. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n
Elon Musk\u2019s announcement that he plans to form a new political party came easily, with the billionaire simply posting his intentions on his social media platform, X. Now comes the hard part.<\/p>\n
If the world\u2019s richest man seriously pursues his goal of standing up what he calls the America Party, Musk will have to navigate a patchwork of state-level requirements to get his party and its candidates on general election ballots across the country.<\/p>\n
The two-party system has largely retained its grip on American politics for more than a century. The Tesla CEO has plenty of money, but loosening that grip would test the America Party\u2019s organization and popular support.<\/p>\n
Musk enjoyed extraordinary entree into the White House this winter as he led the Department of Government Efficiency task force. But he broke with President Donald Trump and congressional Republicans over the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, Trump\u2019s signature domestic policy package containing massive tax cuts and deep reductions to social services funding. The law, which Trump signed July 4, is expected to add more than $4 trillion to the national debt.<\/p>\n
\n\nElon Musk fumes tax and spending bill is a \u2018disgusting abomination\u2019; GOP senators shrug<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n
\u201cWhen it comes to bankrupting our country with waste & graft, we live in a one-party system, not a democracy,\u201d Musk\u00a0wrote on X\u00a0on July 5. \u201cToday, the America Party is formed to give you back your freedom.\u201d<\/p>\n
Musk appeared to signal his party would for now focus on a small number of competitive congressional races, rather than attempting to put forward a nationwide slate of candidates.\u00a0He posted that one way \u201cto execute\u201d on creating the party would be to \u201claser-focus\u201d on two or three U.S. Senate seats and eight to 10 House seats. Musk made no mention of running candidates for state legislatures or other state-level offices.<\/p>\n
Given the thin margins separating Republican and Democratic control of Congress, electing a few of his third-party candidates would allow members of Congress from the America Party to serve as the deciding vote on contentious measures, Musk wrote.<\/p>\n
The nonpartisan Cook Political Report, which ranks U.S. House and Senate races by competitiveness, lists\u00a0three toss-up Senate seats\u00a0and\u00a018 toss-up House districts\u00a0in 2026. All told, competing in those races would require getting on the ballot in 15 states.<\/p>\n
A small sample of what Musk would face:<\/p>\n
\n
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\nIn Michigan, Democratic U.S. Sen. Gary Peters isn\u2019t running for reelection, creating an open race. Candidates of new political parties\u00a0must gather signatures\u00a0of registered voters equal to 1% of the total number of votes in the last election for governor, in this case about 44,620. At least 100 voters in each of half of the state\u2019s congressional districts must sign the petitions.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n
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\nIn Georgia, where Democratic U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff is running for reelection, an America Party candidate would need to\u00a0collect signatures equivalent\u00a0to 1% of the number of registered voters eligible to vote in the previous election.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n
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\nIn North Carolina, Republican U.S. Sen. Thom Tillis announced he wouldn\u2019t seek reelection after Trump threatened to find a primary opponent because of Tillis\u2019 opposition to the tax and spending bill. If Musk wants to\u00a0form a political party\u00a0in the state, he\u2019ll need to gather the signatures of at least 13,979 registered and qualified voters statewide, including at least 200 registered voters from three different congressional districts.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n
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\nIn Ohio, two U.S. House races appear on Cook\u2019s toss-up list: the 9th District, held by Democratic Rep. Marcy Kaptur, and the 13th District, held by Democratic Rep. Emilia Sykes. To register as a minor political party, the America Party\u00a0would need signatures\u00a0of voters equal to 1% of the total vote for governor or for president at the most recent election for those offices. The petition would also have to be signed by at least 500 voters within each of at least half the state\u2019s congressional districts.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Nick Troiano, executive director of Unite America, an organization that seeks to improve political representation by advocating open primaries in which all candidates regardless of party compete against each other for the support of voters, said the America Party could shake up politics. But, he added, history demonstrates that without structural change, Musk\u2019s effort is unlikely to truly disrupt the two-party system.<\/p>\n
\n\nNorth Carolina US Sen. Thom Tillis announces retirement after drawing Trump wrath<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n
Troiano didn\u2019t take a position on whether Musk should form a new party, but said that if the mogul goes ahead with the idea, the new party should embrace open primaries.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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