Elon Musk is one of the biggest losers in Texas’ Democratic sweep, having spent nearly half a billion dollars trying to maintain Republicans’ grip on state politics. His effort to influence the results did not go as planned, and his donations to Ken Paxton and Greg Abbott were his latest moves in a years-long effort to make Texas an ideal environment for his libertarian tech dreams.
After moving to Texas from California, Musk became one of the state’s most influential real estate figures, buying up swaths of land around Austin in Bastrop County and the Rio Grande Valley, home to SpaceX’s launch site.
Musk’s efforts went beyond property ownership, as he pursued the incorporation of Starbase, the company town around the SpaceX launch area near Brownsville. He lobbied for legislation to permit SpaceX to close the surrounding beach and is pursuing control of 700 acres of wildlife preserve to expand the launch site. However, Governor-elect Gina Hinojosa has asked the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department to pause the sale.
The Democrats’ decisive victory also led to a drop in shares in SpaceX and Tesla, with a 10 percent decrease. A critical pillar of Hinojosa’s platform is data center regulation, meaning Texas will likely see the implementation of guardrails to development as Musk’s companies move to aggressively scale their artificial intelligence infrastructure.
After the election results were revealed, Musk tweeted: “Data centers in space looking pretty appealing right now.” This statement suggests that Musk is considering alternative options for his data centers, potentially in response to the anticipated policy shifts in Texas.
Advocates of casino legalization have cause to celebrate, as enthusiasm for Hinojosa and Senator-elect James Talarico trickled down into other statewide races. The incoming Attorney General Nathan Johnson is supportive of legalizing casino gambling, which could be beneficial for Miriam Adelson and her son-in-law Patrick Dumont as they pursue the development of a casino-arena for the Dallas Mavericks.
Cousins Properties, an Atlanta-based firm, is betting on the Uptown Dallas office frenzy, announcing a joint venture with Trammell Crow Company to acquire a 2.3-acre development site where Morgan Stanley wants to build a $1.2 billion high rise. The deal comes after Morgan Stanley committed to building its hub in Uptown Dallas, fueled by $43 million in state incentives.
