Major Republican donors Robert and daughter Rebekah Mercer, who backed former President Donald Trump in 2016, will not back Trump in 2024, according to CNBC.
The Mercers, who donated $20 million to GOP PACs in 2016, made their decision while also deciding to cut back overall campaign spending, according to anonymous sources that spoke with CNBC.
The Mercers join a growing list of major donors who formerly backed the former president but have since distanced themselves from Trump, including Blackstone CEO Steve Schwarzman, Citadel CEO Ken Griffin, businessman Andy Sabin, and billionaire Ronald Lauder.
The Mercers spent millions to assist Trump in beating Hillary Clinton in 2016, yet their spending has decreased since then, with Robert Mercer only spending roughly $350,000 on Trump’s 2020 efforts, according to CNBC.
On Wednesday, major Republican donor Stephen Schwarzman announced that he will not support Trump’s 2024 run, saying he is “defecting” from Trump. Ken Griffin, founder of the Citadel hedge fund, also passed on supporting Trump, opting to endorse Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.
“America does better when its leaders are rooted in today and tomorrow, not today and yesterday,” Schwarzman said. “It is time for the Republican Party to turn to a new generation of leaders and I intend to support one of them in the presidential primaries.”
Griffin called Trump a “three time loser” who needs to “see the writing on the wall” and not run in 2024.
Following Trump’s campaign announcement Tuesday, Republican leaders and voters have been hesitant to back the candidate, with South Carolina Republican Sen. Lindsay Graham, Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy and Republican Texas Sens. John Cornyn and Ted Cruz opting to wait and see how things go in Congress and the 2024 Republican primaries.
“I’m sure I’ll support the nominee of the Republican Party, but I think there’s likely to be a competitive primary election,” Cornyn said, according to the Tribune. Trump also polled lower than possible Republican presidential candidate DeSantis, 23% to 20%, respectively, according to a recent poll by YouGov.
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