It is said to be the highest single donation ever made in a US election campaign: According to media reports, a billionaire is supporting former President Trump's campaign with 50 million dollars. There are also large donations for US President Biden.
Donald Trump can apparently count on an extremely generous supporter in his election campaign. According to US media, businessman Timothy Mellon donated 50 million US dollars to the support organization MAGA Inc. Mellon transferred the money directly the day after Trump's conviction in the trial for covered-up hush money payments, reported NBC News.
According to the New York Times, the single donation is one of the largest sums ever paid in support of candidates. Thanks to the billionaire's generous donation, MAGA Inc. recorded more than 68 million US dollars (63.4 million euros) at the end of May, the newspaper reports.
Little is known about Mellon. According to the Wall Street Journal, the 81-year-old heir to one of the richest US families lives a secluded life in Wyoming. He has been supporting conservative candidates and groups on a large scale since the 2020 presidential election. He had already paid $25 million each to the lobby groups of Trump and independent candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
Bloomberg spends $20 million on Biden
Since election campaigns in the US cost a fortune, candidates depend on generous supporters to be successful. Trump will most likely run as the Republican candidate in November against incumbent US President Joe Biden.
Biden also collected donations for himself. According to the Washington Post, New York's former mayor Mike Bloomberg recently paid a total of $20 million to lobby organizations for Biden to support the Democrat's re-election. “I stood behind Joe Biden in 2020, and I'm proud to do so again,” Bloomberg commented on his donation to the newspaper.
French Gates: Can’t keep quiet this time
Biden can also count on the support of US philanthropist Melinda French Gates in the election campaign. The billionaire spoke out clearly in favor of the incumbent on the online service X. “I have never supported a presidential candidate. But this year's election has such a big impact on women and families that I cannot remain silent this time,” wrote the ex-wife of Microsoft founder Bill Gates.
Women deserve a leader “who cares about the issues they face and who is committed to protecting their safety, their health, their economic strength and their ability to participate freely and fully in a functioning democracy.”
The contrast between Biden and former President Trump “couldn't be greater, and the stakes couldn't be higher.” She will vote for President Biden.
Abortion law as an election campaign issue
At the end of May, French Gates announced that she would donate one billion dollars to support women in the United States. At the beginning of June, she left the charitable foundation she had founded with her former husband with $12.5 billion for her own charitable work.
Through her organization Pivotal, French Gates supports, among others, the Center for Reproductive Rights, which advocates for access to contraception but also for the right to abortion.
Abortion rights will be one of the central issues in the election campaign. President Biden's Democrats hope to capitalize on the dissatisfaction of many people with the Republicans' restrictions on abortion rights at the ballot box.
