Elon Musk has spent roughly $366 million on the 2026 midterm elections, and election officials in multiple states are now warning voters that his America PAC is distributing inaccurate voting information, according to reporting by Raw Story published October 17, 2026.
The warnings arrive less than three weeks before the November 3 vote, with Democrats in battleground districts deploying hyperlocal countermeasures against what they describe as a coordinated distortion campaign.
What election officials are saying about America PAC
Voters who visit VoteSafe.org, a site run by Musk's America PAC, are greeted with the message “Register to Vote,” even though no registration function exists on the platform. Critics have noted the site's resemblance to the nonprofit Vote.org, and its privacy policy permits America PAC to sell user data to third parties.
Election officials in Colorado and Washington state have issued public warnings about inaccurate voting information from the Musk-tied group, CNN reported on October 10. America PAC did not respond to questions from the Associated Press about the warnings.
“Misleading information, giving wrong information, I mean, this is cheating,” Rep. Rashida Tlaib, a Michigan Democrat, told Raw Story. “It's also something that should be illegal, you know, should be arrestable. Like, he should be arrested for putting misinformation out there about people voting.”
The scale of the misinformation problem
The federal government itself has become a vector for false claims this cycle. The nonpartisan Brennan Center for Justice stated that “the Trump administration has made the U.S. government itself a driver of false and misleading information about elections,” including falsehoods about voting machines, mail-in ballots, foreign interference and widespread voter fraud.
Partisan sites posing as local news outlets continue to multiply. NewsGuard has identified 21 such sites launched this year, bringing the total to 1,179, according to AFP. That figure now exceeds the number of genuine local newspapers operating in the United States.
NewsGuard has also identified and debunked 25 false claims about the midterms that went viral on social media platforms, The Guardian reported on October 15.
Targeted ads in battleground states
During the first weeks of September, America PAC spent around $1 million on ads in Alaska, Iowa, Ohio, Texas and Michigan accusing Democratic candidates of supporting taxpayer-funded sex changes, according to Judd Legum's newsletter Popular Information.
One Michigan ad claims that “Abdul El-Sayed supports sex changes for minors and tells parents they should move on.” El-Sayed's actual stated position: “I just think the government shouldn't tell you what kind of healthcare you should have.”
Tlaib said the distortion effort is not confined to digital channels. “He's targeting people, communities like mine. He's already got America PAC in my district, door-knocking, misinformation about Abdul and others,” she said.
She described one instance of fear-driven messaging in her district. “There was a tweet out, 'oh my God, there's ICE at this location,' we had people on the ground that said, 'that's not true,'” Tlaib told Raw Story. “We do think there is some intentional, you know, fear-mongering that is happening to prevent people from voting.”
How Democrats are responding on the ground
Tlaib has hired a dedicated voter protection staffer for Michigan's 12th congressional district, a role tested during the August primary. Her campaign publishes public service announcements mapping ballot box locations and maintains direct contact with city clerks.
“Hyperlocal is the most important, because you're developing a relationship with the local clerks and others,” Tlaib said. “So yeah, we're just going to combat it by being ahead of them 10 steps.”
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries assigned Rep. Joe Morelle of New York to lead an election integrity task force ahead of the midterms. Morelle said polling data shows local election administrators remain the most trusted people in the country.
“People should take time, in our view, to make sure they know the registration status, that they know the rules in their community and their state,” Morelle told Raw Story. “And they should vote as early as possible. But I feel confident. I think we're doing a great job.”
“Too big to rig”
Rep. Melanie Stansbury of New Mexico said the party's strategy rests on turnout volume and legal enforcement, with poll watchers and volunteers deployed to keep polling stations open and functional.
“Our message is, it has to be too big to rig. Meaning that we need the American people to show up, to speak up, to cast their ballots,” Stansbury told Raw Story. “There just cannot be any questions.”
Rep. Ted Lieu of California framed the response in direct terms. “We are very aware of the Trump administration trying to suppress people's votes, and my message to the American people is just go vote,” Lieu said. “If someone's trying to take away your vote, the best way to fight back is to vote.”
Why verification infrastructure matters
The 2026 cycle exposes a structural weakness: when a single actor can spend $366 million while distributing voting information that election officials flag as inaccurate, the verification layer for civic data fails. The Brennan Center's finding that the government itself spreads election falsehoods removes the traditional authority fallback.
The Democratic response, delegated to local clerks and ground-level volunteers, treats trust as a distributed protocol rather than a centralized credential. Whether that architecture holds depends on November 3.
FAQ
How much has Elon Musk spent on the 2026 midterms?
Musk has spent roughly $366 million on the 2026 midterm elections, according to the New York Times, as reported by Raw Story.
What is VoteSafe.org?
VoteSafe.org is a website run by Musk's America PAC. It displays a “Register to Vote” message despite offering no registration function, and its privacy policy allows America PAC to sell user data.
Which states have warned voters about America PAC?
Election officials in Colorado and Washington state have issued public warnings about inaccurate voting information from America PAC, CNN reported on October 10, 2026.
When are the 2026 midterm elections?
Election day is November 3, 2026.