MAGA billionaire Elon Musk hosted Nigel Farage, the leader of Britain’s populist, anti-immigrant Reform Party, at President-elect Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate on Monday.
The meeting came as rumors have swirled that the world’s richest man, who backed Trump’s presidential run to the tune of $239 million and served as one of his most compliant and enthusiastic surrogates, is musing throwing his wealth behind the controversial Brit’s nascent party.
Farage, a longtime Trump cheerleader, was a prominent figurehead in the 2016 Brexit campaign, which is often viewed as a populist presage for Trump’s election as president later that year.
ADVERTISEMENT
The son of a stockbroker, he has burnished his populist bona fides by chugging pints on the stump and making false claims about immigration and migrants. An old schoolmate described him as a “deeply unembarrassed racist.”
Under his leadership, Reform had a surprisingly strong showing in this year’s U.K. election, winning 14.3 percent of the popular vote and five seats in the House of Commons. Trump congratulated Farage, who has been a fixture of the online alt-right on both sides of the Atlantic for years, on the breakthrough.
“We had a great meeting with Elon Musk for an hour yesterday,” said Farage, who was joined by his party’s treasurer, Nick Candy, in a statement. “We learned a great deal about the Trump ground game and will have ongoing discussions on other areas.”
Farage also posed for pictures with and spoke to Vice President-elect JD Vance, images posted to his Instagram account show.
U.K. media reports have swirled for weeks alluding to rumors that Reform was in talks with Musk for a massive financial donation, similar to the backing he gave Trump.
Musk and Farage have denied the rumors—with Farage saying they are receiving only “political support”—though Reform’s deputy leader, Richard Tice, said the party would be “delighted” to exchange some Musk bucks for quid.
More than just a populist political affinity, Musk and Trump have an axe to grind with the new U.K. government.
This year’s election was won by the Labour Party with less than 34 percent of the popular vote, thanks to a divided electorate and the deeply unpopular Conservatives.
Musk and Trump both warred with Keir Starmer, the new Labour Prime Minister, during the presidential campaign.
Musk accused the Center for Countering Digital Hate (CCDH), founded by Starmer’s chief of staff Morgan McSweeney, of “violating US criminal statutes against foreign interference in elections” and trying to “kill” his social media platform X.
Trump’s campaign filed a legal complaint that accused Labour of interfering in the U.S. election because Labour members had traveled to the U.K. to volunteer on Democratic campaigns.
“We only have one more chance left to save the West and we can do great things together,” said Farage and Candy. “Our thanks also to President Trump for allowing us to use Mar-a-Lago for this historic meeting. The special relationship is alive and well.”
