Elon Musk, once a close political ally of US President Donald Trump, announced on Saturday the formation of a new political party in the United States —America Party — aimed at disrupting what he called the country’s “one-party system.”
The tech billionaire and world’s richest person made the announcement via X, the social media platform he owns, declaring the new party’s mission is to restore “freedom” to American voters. Musk, a key donor to Trump’s 2024 campaign and former head of the so-called Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), has had a very public falling out with the president over domestic policy and government spending.
“When it comes to bankrupting our country with waste & graft, we live in a one-party system, not a democracy,” Musk posted. “Today, the America Party is formed to give you back your freedom.”
The move comes after weeks of escalating tensions between Musk and Trump, triggered by the president's sweeping One Big Beautiful Bill — a massive domestic spending package that Musk has fiercely opposed, warning it will add $3.4 trillion to the national debt over the next decade. Musk accused Trump and his Republican allies of betraying promises to reduce federal spending, branding them as enablers of “debt slavery.”
In response, Trump reportedly threatened to revoke federal funding for Musk’s companies and even floated the idea of deporting the South African-born entrepreneur, despite Musk having been a US citizen since 2002. “We’ll have to take a look,” Trump said when asked about the possibility.
Musk’s political announcement was preceded by a July 4th poll he posted on X, asking users whether they wanted “independence from the two-party (some would say uniparty) system.” Over 1.2 million people responded, with a reported 2-to-1 margin in favor of a new political force.
“You want a new political party and you shall have it!” Musk declared, alongside a meme of a two-headed snake captioned, “End the Uniparty.”
While it remains unclear how much influence the America Party will wield in the short term, Musk has already proposed a focused electoral strategy for upcoming races. He suggested targeting two or three vulnerable Senate seats and up to ten House districts where lawmakers who supported the controversial spending bill could be unseated in their primaries.
“All 435 House seats are contested every two years, along with roughly one-third of the Senate,” Musk noted, suggesting that even limited success could give the America Party a crucial foothold in shaping future legislation.
Political analysts quickly drew comparisons to Ross Perot, the billionaire businessman whose 1992 independent presidential campaign is widely believed to have split the conservative vote, aiding Democrat Bill Clinton’s victory. One X user summed up the concern: “You are pulling a Ross Perot, and I don’t like it.”
For now, Musk remains defiant. "If it's the last thing I do on this Earth," he wrote, "those lawmakers will lose their primaries."
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