Is Elon Musk Helping or Hurting Trump’s Campaign?
Both candidates in the presidential race are after the young male vote—but getting the demographic to side with Donald Trump is apparently a lot trickier than capturing key endorsements from characters such as Elon Musk.A new poll by Democratic pollster Blueprint 2024 that surveyed young men between the ages of 18 and 29 across the nation found that Musk’s endorsement had actually done more harm than good for the Republican presidential nominee.Roughly 70 percent of male voters were aware that Musk had endorsed the former president shortly after Trump survived an assassination attempt near Butler, Pennsylvania, in July. And while 24 percent of the men surveyed said that Musk’s endorsement skewed their perspective toward Trump in a positive way, slightly more—28 percent—said it actually made them less likely to support Trump, according to the poll. Approximately 45 percent of respondents said Musk’s stance on Trump had no impact on their opinion.That’s despite the fact that Musk has gone deliberately out of his way to court young men for the MAGA leader’s cause. Through his Trump-focused America PAC, Musk has effectively promised a political bribe, offering to raffle away $1 million to one registered swing state voter per day, every day until Election Day.“We want to try to get over a million, maybe two million voters in the battleground states to sign the petition in support of the First and Second Amendment.… We are going to be awarding $1 million randomly to people who have signed the petition, every day, from now until the election,” Musk said last week.Democrats have roundly criticized the initiative, with Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro describing Musk’s initiative as “deeply concerning” and “something that law enforcement should take a look at.”Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez chimed in on the issue at a Democratic event on Sunday, arguing that “Elon Musk thinks your vote can be bought.”
Both candidates in the presidential race are after the young male vote—but getting the demographic to side with Donald Trump is apparently a lot trickier than capturing key endorsements from characters such as Elon Musk.
A new poll by Democratic pollster Blueprint 2024 that surveyed young men between the ages of 18 and 29 across the nation found that Musk’s endorsement had actually done more harm than good for the Republican presidential nominee.
Roughly 70 percent of male voters were aware that Musk had endorsed the former president shortly after Trump survived an assassination attempt near Butler, Pennsylvania, in July. And while 24 percent of the men surveyed said that Musk’s endorsement skewed their perspective toward Trump in a positive way, slightly more—28 percent—said it actually made them less likely to support Trump, according to the poll. Approximately 45 percent of respondents said Musk’s stance on Trump had no impact on their opinion.
That’s despite the fact that Musk has gone deliberately out of his way to court young men for the MAGA leader’s cause. Through his Trump-focused America PAC, Musk has effectively promised a political bribe, offering to raffle away $1 million to one registered swing state voter per day, every day until Election Day.
“We want to try to get over a million, maybe two million voters in the battleground states to sign the petition in support of the First and Second Amendment.… We are going to be awarding $1 million randomly to people who have signed the petition, every day, from now until the election,” Musk said last week.
Democrats have roundly criticized the initiative, with Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro describing Musk’s initiative as “deeply concerning” and “something that law enforcement should take a look at.”
Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez chimed in on the issue at a Democratic event on Sunday, arguing that “Elon Musk thinks your vote can be bought.”
