Tesla shares (NASDAQ:TSLA) saw a notable rise in Wednesday’s pre-market amid news that Elon Musk’s high-stakes gamble on Donald Trump securing the U.S. presidency has worked. As of writing, Tesla shares are up over 12% in Wednesday’s pre-market trading.
In the lead up to the U.S. presidential elections, Tesla CEO Elon Musk joked that if Donald Trump fails to secure the presidency, then he is gloriously in trouble. Fortunately for Musk, his Trump gamble appears to have paid off. As per the Associated Press, Trump has successfully secured 277 electoral votes, effectively making him the 47th president of the United States.
While Trump has mostly adopted a critical stance on electric vehicles and climate change, he has been pretty supportive of Elon Musk’s ventures, particularly SpaceX, which currently dominates the space sector. He has also openly credited Musk’s work and contributions to the U.S. While addressing his supporters at his victory speech in West Palm Beach, FL, Trump specifically mentioned Musk, stating that “a star is born.”
While Tesla reached new heights in recent years, the company was generally shunned by the Biden-Harris administration. This was highlighted when Tesla was not invited to the White House’s EV summit, and when U.S. President Joe Biden credited General Motors CEO Mary Barra for leading the electric vehicle revolution.
As per Wedbush analyst Dan Ives, a Trump win would be positive for Musk and Tesla, including the electric vehicle maker’s self-driving program. “Trump could also accelerate some of the FSD and autonomous initiatives for Tesla (and Waymo as well) in the White House. The autonomous fast tracking will be front and center for investors in this scenario as some of the 2026/2027 goals for Tesla could be accelerated,” Ives wrote in a post on X.
As of writing, Tesla shares are trading up 12.33% at 282.43 per share.