Trump Voters in Focus Group Slam Elon Musk’s Growing Influence: ‘I Didn’t Vote for Him’
Voters in a focus group who have supported President-elect Donald Trump universally said the incoming president’s close relationship with Elon Musk is not a good thing.
Axios teamed up with Engagious/Sago for a focus group of 14 swing state voters who all voted for Trump in 2016 and some of whom swung back his way for the 2024 election. The report, published on Friday, revealed none of the voters were willing to call Musk’s relationship to Trump a positive.
Musk endorsed Trump and was a major supporter of his campaign. Trump has announced that Musk will help lead what he’s calling the Department of Government Efficiency, which is meant to look at cutting back on government waste.
Of the 14 swing state voters polled — through two online panels — 12 of them were familiar with Musk being an advisor to Trump. Five called it a bad thing while seven did not know how to respond, but none would describe the relationship as good.
All 14 voters supported Trump in 2016 and then swung to President Joe Biden in 2020. In 2024, five swung back to Trump, another five backed Vice President Kamala Harris, and another four voted for a third party.
