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The stories that matter on money and politics in the race for the White House
Ken Griffin has again become a top donor to the Republican effort to control Congress, after giving $20mn to two of the party’s crucial fundraising groups in the second quarter of the year, according to sources familiar with the matter.
The billionaire founder of hedge fund Citadel has now donated a total of $35mn to the two super Pacs — the Congressional Leadership Fund and Senate Leadership Fund — this election cycle.
“I have long been dedicated to supporting problem-solving candidates who drive real results for the country. CLF has done a tremendous job in recruiting qualified individuals to serve our nation,” Griffin said on Monday.
The billionaire has been increasing the amount he has given to the organisation over past election cycles, donating $1mn to CLF in 2016, $4.5mn in 2018, $10mn in 2020, and $27mn in 2022.
This year, his donations to the committee are earmarked for the super Pac’s “next generation” fund, which is dedicated to “emerging leaders” of the Republican party, including vulnerable first-term House members such as Juan Ciscomani, Lori Chavez-DeRemer and John James.
“For cycles now, Ken Griffin has taken a long view on his political giving,” CLF president Dan Conston told the Financial Times. “These are deliberate investments to elevate the kind of solutions-oriented candidates that exemplify the best of what America can be.”
The SLF declined to comment.
Griffin has given roughly $60mn to federal candidates in the first three months of the year, including $10mn each to super Pacs for former Maryland governor Larry Hogan and former Bridgewater chief David McCormick, Senate candidates in Maryland and Pennsylvania, respectively.
But it remains unclear whether Griffin will donate to Trump. In 2022, the billionaire called on the former president to step aside for Ron DeSantis. A year later, as DeSantis floundered, he gave $5mn to boost Nikki Haley’s campaign.
In recent months Griffin has said his financial support for Trump would be contingent upon his vice-presidential pick. On Monday, Trump announced that Ohio senator JD Vance would be his running mate.
Griffin met the former president at the Trump National Golf Club in Sterling, Virginia, two weeks ago, according to a person familiar with the meeting, which was first reported by Bloomberg.
Additional reporting by Sam Learner