The founder of one of the largest software companies in the world is working to make sure Donald Trump is not elected as the GOP nomination for the 2024 presidential election.
Here’s a look at who the billionaire is and who he is supporting.
What Happened: The list of candidates running for president as Republican for the 2024 election is in the double digits. Despite the large number of entries in the race, former president Trump continues to lead the way with a commanding lead in most election polls.
Billionaire Larry Ellison, who is the co-founder, executive chairman and chief technology officer at Oracle Corporation ORCL, would like to see Trump defeated in the primary by Republican voters.
Ellison is backing Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC), who entered the race in May 2023, to be the Republican candidate for the 2024 election.
A report from Puck News said Ellison’s name appeared once in a filing by Scott for Federal Election Commission paperwork released recently and it was for $2,566.13 for “lodging.”
While some political insiders questions the move and saw it as a potential snub from Ellison after publicly and financially showing support for Scott over the years, the report said the move may have been intentional.
The report said Ellison was planning to make an eight-figure donation to a political action committee (PAC) connected to the election campaign of Scott.
Based on the reports, the donation would be the second largest contribution or first largest contribution in the 2024 Republican presidential primary so far.
The current record is $20 million donated by Robert Bigelow to the Ron DeSantis campaign.
Puck News said the donation could have been timed to intentionally miss the first six months of 2023 deadline of June 30 to be included in Federal Election Commission paperwork. The eight-figure donation would not be publicly confirmed until January 2024 if this is the case.
Ellison ranks as the fifth richest person in the world according to Bloomberg, with a wealth of $127 billion.
Related Link: Ron DeSantis Or Tim Scott? Elon Musk Says He Wants This Person To Be Next President
Why It’s Important: Ellison has supported Scott for several years and was said to be planning a large donation earlier this year, according to CNBC.
The Oracle co-founder attended the campaign announcement rally of Scott, where the senator referenced Ellison as “one of my mentors.”
The CNBC article said Ellison was planning to donate at least $10 million to the Scott political action committee, with reports that the funding for the 2024 election could be between $20 million and $30 million.
Potential funding to help power Scott's campaign came as the senator has only 3% of support from Republican voters in the latest Morning Consult poll.
The previous record holder for the top donation to a Republican in the current election cycle spoke out on the candidate he supports, as DeSantis has seen support falling in polls.
“He does need to shift to get to moderates. He’ll lose if he doesn’t … Extremism isn’t going to get you elected,” Bigelow told Reuters.
Bigelow criticized a bill signed by the Florida governor in April that banned abortions in the state after six weeks.
The donor said he was not willing to donate more money to DeSantis’ campaign at the time.
“Not until I see that he’s able to generate more on his own. I’m already too big a percentage. A lot of his donors are still on the fence.”
Scott had second-quarter funding of $5.9 million and spending of $6.7 million according to a report. The senator was one of three candidates in the 2024 presidential race with a cash burn of more than 100% in the second quarter.
With $21.1 million left in remaining campaign funds, the report found Scott to have one of the biggest balances left.
Photo: Ellison, Shutterstock; Scott, photo by Gage Skidmore via Flickr Creative Commons
© 2024 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.
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