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By Theo Burman
Live News Reporter
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A small group of voters in southern Texas have begun casting ballots to create what could soon be the nation's newest municipality: Starbase, Texas.
With fewer than 300 registered voters and an about 1.5-square-mile footprint, the proposed city would become a company town in all but name, as part of Elon Musk's plans for the future headquarters of his rocket company SpaceX.
The Context
Voting began earlier this week and will conclude on May 3. The vote, if successful, would turn the stretch of coastal land already dominated by SpaceX infrastructure into an official municipality. Musk has repeatedly said that he has a vision of a space-age town named Starbase, populated primarily by SpaceX employees.
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What To Know
The lone polling site for the incorporation vote is a SpaceX facility typically closed to the public. According to The New York Times, early turnout was sparse, though not surprising given the tiny voter roll of 279 individuals.
The incorporation vote caps off a yearslong push by Musk, who began calling the area "Starbase" more than four years ago.
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Initially, the name was more marketing than municipal, but the physical presence of SpaceX soon expanded dramatically. The company relocated its headquarters to the region and began constructing housing to accommodate its workforce of approximately 3,500 people.
SpaceX overtook Telsa as the biggest contributor to Musk's net worth in 2024. Amid Tesla's sharp profit drop recently and criticism over his role in Donald Trump's administration, the Starbase vote would offer a symbolic victory to the billionaire.
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Despite Musk's vocal presence on social media, especially on his own site X, formerly Twitter. he has remained relatively quiet about the vote on social media, choosing instead to retweet posts about it from other people.
What People Are Saying
**In a post shared by Musk, S.E. Robinson, who chronicles the daily activities of the tech billionaire's companies, wrote on X: "**On May 3rd, Boca Chica Village in Cameron County, Texas, with a population of fewer than 500, will vote on incorporating as Starbase. This will make Starbase an official city in Texas.
"If approved, Starbase will also gain authority to close Texas State Highway 4 and Boca Chica Beach, currently managed by the county, easing SpaceX's operational challenges.
"Two Texas legislature bills, Senate Bill 2188 and House Bill 4660, support granting the city beach closure rights. No specific vote dates are scheduled for the Bills in the Texas Legislature's 89th session."
What Happens Next
Voting will conclude in early May. The vote is expected to pass, as the majority of voters are SpaceX employees.
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