Azernews.Az

Elon Musk announced on Saturday that he is launching a new political party in the United States, the "America Party", in an effort to challenge what he called the nation’s “one-party system.”

The tech magnate and former ally of President Donald Trump, who was one of Trump’s largest donors during the 2024 election, broke publicly with the president after a fallout over government spending and staffing cuts. Musk had previously led the Department of Government Efficiency, a role aimed at trimming the federal budget and workforce.

In a post on X, the social media platform he owns, Musk declared:

“When it comes to bankrupting our country with waste & graft, we live in a one-party system, not a democracy. Today, the America Party is formed to give you back your freedom.”

Musk cited results from a poll he conducted on Independence Day, asking Americans whether they wanted to move away from the long-standing two-party political structure. More than 1.2 million users responded, with a two-to-one majority in favour of a new political force.

“You want a new political party, and you shall have it,” Musk wrote.

The announcement follows a dramatic escalation in tensions between Musk and Trump, particularly after Trump pushed for the passage of a sweeping domestic spending package dubbed the "One Big Beautiful Bill". Musk harshly criticized the bill and its Republican supporters, accusing them of endorsing “debt slavery” and betraying their fiscal promises.

After the bill passed and was signed into law — projected to increase the national deficit by $3.4 trillion over the next decade — Musk pledged to fight back by creating an alternative political movement.

Trump responded with his own threat, suggesting he might consider deporting Musk, who was born in South Africa and became a U.S. citizen in 2002, and hinted at withdrawing federal funding from Musk’s companies such as SpaceX and Tesla.

“We’ll have to take a look,” Trump told reporters when asked directly about deporting the billionaire.