April 27, 2025
Earlier this week, Elon Musk announced he will reduce his involvement with the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) as profits in Tesla, his electric vehicle company, fell. Three months into Donald Trump’s second administration, public opinion remains unfavorable toward Musk and DOGE’s efforts to downsize the federal government. Partisanship plays a significant role in shaping perceptions of Musk and DOGE. Overall, two-thirds of adults say Musk has too much influence in the Trump administration. Only three in ten feel Musk’s influence is appropriate, and few think he has too little influence.
Most Democrats and independents say he has too much influence on the federal government, while Republicans are more likely to say he has an appropriate amount of influence. Even among Republicans, 37% feel he has too much influence.
At DOGE, Musk oversees initiatives aimed at streamlining the federal government. About half of the public believe Trump has gone too far in reducing the federal workforce. Republicans are more likely than Democrats or independents to say Trump’s actions to reduce the federal workforce are appropriate. Fully a quarter of Republicans think his actions to reduce the federal workforce have not gone far enough.
Two in five adults are extremely or very concerned that cuts to federal government agencies, services, or grants will directly affect themselves or someone they know. Democrats are more likely than Republicans to say they are extremely or very concerned that they or someone they know will be directly affected by cuts to federal government agencies, services, or grants.
Republicans are more confident that Social Security and Medicare will be available to them when they need it now compared to March 2023. Democrats are now less confident about the future of the two programs than in 2023.
Overall, 57% have an unfavorable opinion of Musk, while 33% view him favorably. A majority of Democrats and independents hold an unfavorable view of Musk, while most Republicans have a favorable opinion of him.
In January ahead of Trump’s inauguration, about half the public had an unfavorable opinion of Musk (52%), and 36% had a favorable opinion of him. While the proportion of Republicans who view him favorably has remained steady, Democrats and independents have become more negative.
The nationwide poll was conducted April 17-21, 2025 using the AmeriSpeak® Panel, the probability-based panel of NORC at the University of Chicago. Online and telephone interviews using landlines and cell phones were conducted with 1,260 adults. The overall margin of sampling error is +/- 3.9 percentage points.
- Suggested Citation: AP-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research. “Most say Musk has too much influence amid concerns over reductions in the federal government ” (April 2025). [https://apnorc.org/projects/most-say-musk-has-too-much-influence-amid-concerns-over-reductions-in-the-federal-government/]
