USA elections | Anti-corruption is the unifying message

Elon Musk (l.) and Donald Trump were punished by voters for their corrupt dealings over the past two years. Photo: AFP/Getty/Kevin Dietsch What a resounding slap in the face for the Republicans and their president in the White House! And at the same time, how relieving an election evening was for all those who never wanted to come to terms with their rule and who had been working for years to end it as quickly as possible. The end of the Trump era has begun. After the Democrats' landslide victory, there can only be one person who can be considered an even bigger loser in these US congressional elections: Elon Musk.

Trump is still president and therefore the most powerful person in the world, even if he is now deprived of the opportunity to push forward laws himself. That alone is a big step forward, even if Trump has rarely used it so far. And yes, he can veto progressive Democratic initiatives. Nevertheless, he has to fear greater surveillance by the parliament, which will be controlled by the opposition from January. His corrupt dealings with billionaires at home and abroad, which have so far become apparent, are likely to encounter new barriers.

Trump's accomplice Musk also noticed that corruption was an important issue for voters. Maybe even more than the president himself. The head of Tesla and Space X had invested almost half a billion US dollars in the races of 32 Republican candidates. 29 of them lost. Particularly clear was the Senate candidate Ken Paxton in Texas, whom Musk supported with more than $200 million. For the native South African, these are just peanuts, but the purpose of his investment was to place loyal politicians in Washington who would ensure Musk further tax gifts and lax monitoring of his activities. This source of money may not dry up, but it will not become an endless stream either.

Two years ago, Elon Musk was seen as a savior, especially by many young men, but since his short and devastating time in Trump's government, Elon Musk has become the epitome of corruption. It is now clear to even conservative people in Texas, Kansas and South Carolina that politicians who have been bought only help billionaires, while the poorer 99 percent can afford less and less.

On Tuesday, however, the fight against corruption united not only progressive and conservative voters, but also the moderate and left wing of the Democratic Party for months. If she manages to pursue anti-corruption policy in the states and maintain pressure on Trump in Washington with this issue, a long-term stable electorate is possible that would also elect a Democrat as president in 2028.

With proposed legislation that would finally restrict campaign donations again, ban stock trading for members of parliament and government employees and make lobbying transparent, there would be plenty of opportunities to show whose side the Democrats will be on in the coming years. If Trump should veto this, he would only dig deeper the hole his party has just fallen into.

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