An excellent PAC backing Republican presidential candidate Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C. on Monday disclosed main donations from a number of the nation’s wealthiest enterprise leaders.
The backing underscores the outsized assist that Scott enjoys from Wall Street donors, even as polls gauge his assist amongst possible primary voters at under 5 percent.
Contributions from simply three billionaires, Nelson Peltz, Jeffrey Yass and Stanley Druckenmiller, which haven’t been beforehand reported, added up to virtually $1 million for the pro-Scott Opportunity Matters Fund Action PAC within the first half of the yr, filings with the Federal Election Commission present.
Peltz, a billionaire and one-time Trump backer, hosted a fundraiser in 2020 to assist the previous president’s failed bid for reelection.
Between April and June this yr, he gave $80,000 to the PAC backing Scott, who solely formally entered the race in May.
Peltz is a founding companion of funding agency Trian Fund Management and was a supporter of the previous president till Trump supporters attacked the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. More not too long ago, Peltz has reportedly been souring on one other 2024 Republican presidential hopeful, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, as the as soon as promising marketing campaign has confronted headwinds since its launch in May.
Yass, a billionaire GOP megadonor and a co-founder of Susquehanna International Group, donated $600,000 to the identical pro-Scott tremendous PAC from March by June, in accordance to Monday’s filings.
This is not the one time this yr Yass has donated to an effort to halt Trump. He additionally gave $15 million to Club for Growth Action, a separate tremendous PAC that’s taking on Trump’s newest run for president.
Druckenmiller, a veteran Wall Street investor, donated $150,000 to the Opportunity Matters Fund Action in April, the submitting confirmed.
Druckenmiller can also be co-hosting a splashy Hamptons fundraiser subsequent month to support Scott’s presidential bid. Marc Rowan, the CEO of Apollo Global Management, is co-hosting the occasion.
Rowan donated $250,000 to a distinct pro-Scott tremendous PAC, Trust In The Mission (TIM) PAC, final quarter. Federal Election Commission filings present that he additionally donated $6,600 to Scott’s marketing campaign for president in June. Ben Navarro, a South Carolina businessman and CEO of Sherman Financial Group, donated $5 million to the identical committee.
Representatives for Yass, Peltz and Rowan didn’t return a request for remark. Druckenmiller and Navarro didn’t return requests for remark from CNBC.
The high-dollar assist for Scott comes as Trump continues to dominate the remainder of the sphere within the polls. A New York Times-Siena College survey launched Monday confirmed Trump successful 54% of possible GOP major voters, with DeSantis at 17% and Scott at 3%.
But with the DeSantis marketing campaign burning by money and shedding staffers, Scott’s low key operation may provide rich donors what they see as the most effective alternative to counter Trump’s affect on the get together.
Scott’s marketing campaign raised $7 million within the second quarter of 2023, and ended the quarter with round $21 million available.
DeSantis nonetheless noticed donations from notable billionaires, such as veteran hedge fund supervisor Paul Tudor Jones. But whereas his marketing campaign raised $20 million within the second quarter alone, it reported having about $12 million in money available, in accordance to filings.