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When it comes to the presidential election, what once was like the Kentucky Derby has been turned into a Formula 1 style race. It’s all courtesy of billionaires who are pouring money onto the weighted scales of justice.
But which side is favored by the ultra-wealthy? It turns out the Vice President and democratic nominee Kamala Harris is the favored candidate. Tracking the movements of the rich, Forbes found that 81 billionaires support Harris and some 51 back former president Donald Trump, as of publication.
To boot, 28 billionaires have donated $1 million to Harris since August, per Forbes. This includes, though is not limited to, former Meta Platforms exec Sheryl Sandberg, founder Michael Bloomberg, and Hollywood director Steven Spielberg. Others have donated sizable gifts according to analysis of Federal Election Commission and reports from Bloomberg. Notable figures who have made their mark include billionaire Shark Tank judge Mark Cuban, who has publicly campaigned for Harris, and Taylor Swift. The true depth of donations will not be seen until after the whole matter is settled; as Forbes points out, final FEC reports aren’t issued until December.
Trump has less traction amongst the cohort than Harris, but still has some big players making a whole lot of noise. The richest man in the world, Elon Musk, has campaigned heavily for Trump, creating a dubiously legal sweepstakes as organized by his super PAC, and funneling $74 million from just July to September into said PAC for Trump.
While Harris might have more billionaires’ support, Trump isn’t lagging far behind, in large part due to donations from the whales. All in all, 26 billionaires have donated at least $1 million to Trump, estimates Forbes. His backers that have donated smaller gifts include venture capitalist Marc Andreessen and hedge fund manager Bill Ackman.
Billionaires back Harris, but not without a cost
A report from wealth manager UBS finds that millionaires also favor Harris. Harris carries more favor than Trump with the 971 investors surveyed, at 57% and 43% for Trump. Even so, they narrowly prefer Trump to Harris on the economy at 51% and 49%, respectively.
What has been deemed by some as one of the closest elections in recent history, both political parties have claimed this race is of drastic importance. Some Wall Street titans are sticking by Harris due to some other items on the ticket. More than 90 business leaders backed her, stating Harris’ “election is the best way to support the continued strength, security, and reliability of our democracy and economy.”
Though, that doesn’t mean that billionaire Democrats are willing to give away their wealth entirely. While some within Harris’ own party push to tax the super-rich as rampant wealth inequality rises, her billionaire backers are doing the opposite of signing a blank check.
Cuban spoke against the potential of Harris taxing unrealized capital gains while on CNBC’s Squawk Box. He asserted that was “not going to happen.” And “if for some reason she lied about it, I would campaign against her so there wouldn’t be a second term.”
Having reached new fundraising milestones, Harris received a record-breaking number of small-dollar donations when she announced her candidacy, reports the Times. So it’s not just the ultra-rich holding her steady.
Money talks, the wealthy whisper
Most recently, philanthropist and Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates stepped out of the sidelines. “This election is different,” he said in a statement to The New York Times, privately reporting to have donated $50 million to Harris’ campaign.
Gates has stayed away from a real endorsement though, as has JPMorganChase CEO Jamie Dimon. Dimon has reportedly told colleagues that he supports Harris, though has not disclosed this publicly for fears of retaliation if Trump wins, reports the Times.
Warren Buffett and Mark Zuckerberg have similarly remained mum. Concerned about the potential for an AI deepfake that uses his likeness to endorse a candidate, Buffett told CNBC that “anything they see with my image or my voice, it just ain’t me.”
But for some this election has been enough to represent a real change of heart. With “so much riding” on this election, philanthropist Melinda French Gates openly endorsed a candidate when backing Harris. Calling for a leader that champions reproductive rights, French Gates apparently made a sizable contribution to her campaign.
