Who Are the Billionaire Donors Funding U.S. Election Campaigns?
October 28, 2024 Hour: 11:13 am
Some billionaires keep their anonymity by channeling their contributions through ‘Dark Money’ organizations.
Advertising, massive rallies, or visits to “swing” states to persuade undecided voters are key aspects of any presidential campaign. One of the most expensive parts of the race to the White House is when politicians receive millions from “megadonors,” the wealthiest individuals in the United States.
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Some billionaires make public contributions, like Elon Musk, who has even promised daily million-dollar prizes for voters in key states. Others, such as Bill Gates, use “dark money” organizations that do not disclose donors, allowing them to show support through substantial financial contributions.
The Fundraising Race
Despite a later start, Vice President Kamala Harris’s campaign has given Democrats a significant lead in fundraising, having raised almost three times more than her opponent, Donald Trump.
As of October 16, the campaign committee for Joe Biden, now for Harris, had raised US$997.2 million, while Trump’s campaign committee had amassed US$388 million in total, according to the Federal Election Commission.
However, Trump has secured more “outside money”—specifically US$613.7 million—compared to Harris’s US$474 million, according to OpenSecrets, a government transparency research group that monitors non-campaign donations.
The Donors Behind Trump
While nearly all “megadonors” appear on Forbes magazine’s list of the wealthiest people, not all are household names. The largest public donor to the Republican campaign is businessman Timothy Mellon, who has publicly donated US$172 million.
No other donor has publicly spent more in support of Trump this cycle than Mellon, a descendant of former Treasury Secretary and banking magnate Andrew Mellon.
The second-largest donor as of less than two weeks before the election (November 5) is physician Miriam Adelson. According to The Washington Post, she has donated US$134.8 million to Trump’s campaign, contributing to various funds and the super PAC Preserve America.
Adelson, a casino magnate with Las Vegas Sands (worth US$35 billion), has been calling on other billionaires to help bring Trump back to the White House and has already raised several million dollars for her super PAC in recent weeks, according to The New York Times.
However, Adelson may still fall short of Trump’s expectations; the former president reportedly told close associates early this year that he expected the billionaire to donate US$250 million to support him.
Musk, the world’s richest person, has been one of the most discussed figures in this election since showing his support for Trump on X (the social network he owns) this summer. However, he is only the sixth largest public donor in this campaign, contributing US$76.3 million.
The Donors Behind Harris
Eighth on the list of top individual donors and the leading public Democratic contributor is Michael Bloomberg, co-founder of the financial software and media company bearing his name, who has donated US$43.7 million to Harris’s campaign.
The former three-term Republican mayor of New York and 2020 Democratic presidential primary candidate reportedly donated around US$50 million after speaking with Bill Gates, according to The New York Times.
Microsoft co-founder Gates supported the vice president with a US$50 million donation made in secret. However, Gates has not publicly confirmed his financial backing for the Democratic leader.
Gates’s donation was specifically directed to the nonprofit branch of Future Forward, a 501(c)(4) “dark money” organization that does not disclose its donors, according to the outlet. As a result, no Gates contribution appears in any public record.
George and Alex Soros, the father-son duo known as “megadonors” in every U.S. election cycle, were quick to support Harris after Joe Biden announced he would be withdrawing from the White House race.
The Open Society Policy Center, a 501(c)(4) organization primarily funded by Soros, allocated US$60 million to a super PAC called Project Democracy, which supports Harris.
teleSUR/ JF Source: EFE