Public Opinion and the Paradoxes of Elon Musk's Space Project in Cameron County

• In Event: Elections and Public Opinion in State Politics

Abstract

In 2014, Elon Musk, the richest man in the world according to Forbes (with an estimated net worth of approximately $230 billion) broke ground on the SpaceX facility on Boca Chica Beach in Cameron County, Texas, one of the poorest counties in the country. Some consider this a big opportunity for Cameron County in terms of job creation, economic growth prospects and overall development. Others believe that his arrival would mean more inequality, gentrification, and environmental damage in a context of extremely high levels of corruption that would potentiate the negative effects of big capital in an already vulnerable population. To examine the impact that SpaceX’s arrival has had on this border region we conducted a survey of Cameron County residents in Spring 2023. This project reports on the results of the survey in order to gain a better understanding of how the arrival of SpaceX has been perceived by the local community. Results are mixed but show some key concerns regarding environmental impact and affectations to the community’s well-being in particular. Concerns about corruption are fundamental. This analysis of public opinion data is complemented with semi-structured interviews with key stakeholders including government officials, developers, environmentalists, and other activists connected with this subject matter.

Authors

• Michelle Keck, University of Texas at Rio Grande Valley

• Guadalupe Correa-Cabrera, George Mason University

• Dongkyu Kim, University of Texas Rio Grande Valley