Errol Musk: Biography, Net Worth, and Relationship with Elon Musk

There are few family dynamics as publicly dissected — and as deeply fractured — as the one between Elon Musk and his father, Errol. The 79-year-old South African patriarch has been called many things by his billionaire son, from “a terrible human being” to the source of his own controversial worldview. This profile pieces together his biography, disputed wealth, the stepdaughter relationship that shocked the world, and the strained bond with a son who’d rather keep his children away.

Full name: Errol Graham Musk ·
Born: 25 May 1946 ·
Nationality: South African ·
Occupation: Businessman, politician ·
Known for: Father of Elon Musk ·
Children: Elon, Kimbal, Tosca, and others

Six key facts about Errol Musk reveal a life defined by public roles and private controversies.

Who is Elon Musk’s biological father?

Errol Graham Musk is the biological father of Elon Musk, born on 25 May 1946 in Pretoria, South Africa (Wikipedia). He grew up in the apartheid-era capital, the son of a family with business interests that stretched into emerald trading — though the extent of that trade is poorly documented.

Early life and upbringing

• Errol studied mechanical engineering and worked as a consultant and property developer (Wikipedia)
• He entered politics early, winning a seat on Pretoria City Council in 1972 as an independent
• From 1980 he aligned with the Progressive Federal Party, a liberal anti-apartheid party

Career and political involvement

Errol Musk served on the Pretoria City Council from 1972 to 1983, initially as an independent and later with the Progressive Federal Party (Wikipedia). His business portfolio included property development and mechanical engineering consulting. In a 2025 interview with CNN, he claimed he “never saw” the oppression of Black South Africans during apartheid — a statement that drew widespread criticism.

Role in the Musk family

Errol married Maye Haldeman in 1970, and within a year their first child, Elon, was born (People). The marriage produced three children: Elon, Kimbal, and Tosca. Maye has described the marriage as abusive in her autobiography. The couple divorced in 1979.

The pattern: Errol Musk built a public profile as a politician and businessman in South Africa, but his private life — marked by divorce and later the stepdaughter relationship — has overshadowed any professional legacy.

Was Errol Musk rich before Elon?

Errol Musk owned a construction and property business, was wealthy by South African standards in the 1970s and 1980s, and has claimed he never needed his son’s money. But pinning down an exact figure is nearly impossible.

Errol Musk’s financial background

• He ran a successful construction and property development firm in Pretoria
• His family had interests in emerald trading, though details are sparse (Wikipedia)
• A 2025 entertainment profile estimated his net worth at $5 million (Reality Tea)

Sources of wealth

Errol’s wealth came from engineering, real estate, and business ventures, according to the same 2025 profile (Reality Tea). He has stated that he was financially comfortable before Elon’s rise to billionaire status, though no independent verification of his current holdings exists.

Comparison with Elon Musk’s fortune

Elon Musk’s net worth — which has fluctuated between roughly $150 billion and $250 billion in recent years — dwarfs any wealth Errol ever accumulated. The gap is not just numerical: it reflects two entirely different economic worlds. Errol’s millions in South African property are a rounding error in his son’s portfolio of Tesla, SpaceX, and xAI.

The catch: Errol’s financial claims are almost impossible to verify independently. The $5 million figure comes from a low-confidence source and should be treated as a rough estimate, not a verified fact.

Did Errol Musk have children with his stepdaughter?

Yes — and the revelation, first widely reported in 2022, drew global condemnation. Errol Musk fathered two children with his stepdaughter Jana Bezuidenhout, the daughter of his second wife, Heide Bezuidenhout.

Errol Musk’s relationship with his stepdaughter

Walter Isaacson, Elon Musk’s biographer, wrote that Elon had worried about the attention his father was paying to Jana when she was a minor (Business Insider). Errol later publicly described the relationship as “completely normal” in a 2022 interview (South China Morning Post).

Children born from that relationship

• A son, Elliot Rush, was born from the relationship, according to reporting from 2022 (The Independent)
• A daughter was born in 2019, as confirmed by the same report
• Errol Musk reportedly has seven children in total, including these two (People)

Public and family reaction

The news prompted international headlines. Elon Musk has not publicly commented on the specific relationship but has spoken at length about his father’s character. A 2025 report from the Hindustan Times alleged that Errol Musk had been accused of sexually abusing five children and stepchildren since 1993; Errol denied the allegations (Hindustan Times). Those allegations have not been tested in court and remain unproven.

Why this matters: The stepdaughter relationship is not a private family matter — it is the clearest signal yet of the environment that Elon Musk has said he wants to shield his own children from.

Do Elon and Errol get along?

No — and the rift has been public for years. Elon Musk has described his father as a “terrible human being” and has said he does not want his own children to meet Errol.

History of their relationship

The relationship broke down after Errol and Maye’s divorce in 1979. Elon chose to live with his mother. In Isaacson’s biography, Musk recalls his father’s psychological cruelty and describes a childhood marked by fear (Business Insider).

Public statements by Elon Musk

“He’s a terrible human being. He’s about as bad as you can get.” — Elon Musk, in a 2022 interview with Rolling Stone (via Business Insider)

Current status

Elon Musk has said he speaks to his father rarely. Errol has expressed a desire to reconcile, but as of 2025 there is no public evidence of progress. Elon has stated unequivocally that he does not want his children to have a relationship with Errol.

The trade-off: Errol wants a relationship with his billionaire son, but the weight of past trauma — and the stepdaughter controversy — makes that nearly impossible.

Does Elon Musk talk to Errol Musk?

Rarely, and only when necessary. The communication is minimal, strained, and has been described by Elon as almost non-existent.

Frequency of communication

Elon Musk has said in interviews that he speaks to his father only a few times a year, if that. There is no regular phone call or visit pattern.

Reasons for limited contact

• Elon has described his father as psychologically abusive during his childhood
• The stepdaughter relationship deepened the estrangement
• Elon has said he does not want his children exposed to Errol

Recent updates

In 2025, Errol Musk gave a CNN interview in which he said he never saw apartheid oppression — a comment that drew swift backlash and made no mention of any recent conversation with his son about it. The relationship remains frozen.

The implication: For Errol Musk, the door to reconciliation appears closed. For Elon, the choice is clear: protect his own family from the pattern he grew up in.

Timeline

• 1946 — Errol Graham Musk born in Pretoria, South Africa (Wikipedia)
• 1970 — Marries Maye Haldeman (People)
• 1971 — Birth of Elon Musk (People)
• 1979 — Divorce from Maye Musk
• 1980s — Runs construction and property businesses
• 2010s — Relationship with stepdaughter Jana Bezuidenhout revealed
• 2019 — Daughter born to Errol and Jana (The Independent)
• 2025 — Errol Musk claims in CNN interview he never saw apartheid oppression
• 2025 — Abuse allegations reported by Hindustan Times; Errol denies them

For a deeper look into the patriarch’s background, Errol Musks controversial life offers a detailed account of his career and family dynamics.

Frequently asked questions

Related reading: Rupert Murdoch: Empire, Lawsuit, and Family Wealth · Larry Ellison: Net Worth, Wives, Religion, and Politics