billionaires supporting Kamala Harris: Mark Zuckerberg and Warren Buffett are silent on their support for Kamala Harris as a US presidential candidate. Did Trump win their support?

As the race for the 2024 U.S. presidential race heats up, billionaires across the country have begun picking sides that provide significant financial support to Vice President Kamala Harris or former President Donald Trump. Kamala Harris has received support from more billionaires than Donald Trump in the current election cycle, although many billionaires have chosen to remain neutral. A Forbes report shows that of the billionaires taking sides, 76 support Harris, while 49 support Trump.

While some billionaires like Elon Musk are quite vocal about their support, others, like Mark Zuckerberg and Warren Buffet, have stuck with this cycle. According to the Forbes report, the financial support of these billionaires will not be fully disclosed until the Federal Election Commission’s final reports are released in December.

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Despite Kamala Harris’ criticism of pro-billionaire policies, many ultra-wealthy individuals support her for pragmatic reasons. A letter from more than a dozen billionaires supporting Harris emphasized that she is expected to maintain “fair and predictable policies” that ensure economic stability. A recent survey also revealed that technology, healthcare and sustainability stocks are most poised to benefit from a Harris victory.

Billionaires supporting Kamala Harris

A total of 76 billionaires (or more) support Harris. A total of 28 billionaires have been identified who donated $1 million to groups supporting Harris as of August, the Forbes report suggests. Some of the notable billionaires include:

Michael Bloomberg (Former Mayor of New York, Bloomberg)
Arthur Blank (Atlanta Falcons)
Reid Hoffman (LinkedIn)
Vinod Khosla (Khosla Ventures)
Dustin Moskovitz (Facebook)
Steven Spielberg (Hollywood director)
Reed Hastings (Netflix)
Jobs for Laurene Powell (Apple)
Katharine Rayner (Cox Enterprises)
George Soros (Soros Fund Management)
Christy Walton (Walmart)

Additionally, these additional billionaires Melinda French Gates (Microsoft), Joe Gebbia (Airbnb), Hamilton James (Blackstone), Margot Perot (Ross Perot’s widow) have donated to Harris election funds or groups supporting Harris’ election. Prominent individuals such as Mark Cuban and Magic Johnson signed an open letter endorsing it. Kamala Harris has also gained support from renowned music stars Taylor Swift and Bruce Springsteen.

READ ALSO: 2024 US elections: latest poll reveals who leads in each state; Is Kamala Harris winning in swing states?

Billionaires supporting Donald Trump

A total of 49 billionaires have been identified as Trump supporters. Some 26 billionaires donated at least $1 million to Trump’s election efforts in August, Forbes reported. Some of the notable names include:

Miriam Adelson (Las Vegas Sands Corp.)
Don Ahern (Las Vegas construction)
Diane Hendricks (ABC supply)
Linda McMahon (WWE)
Steve Wynn (Wynn Resorts)

Another 16 billionaires contributed between US$50,000 and US$999,999, including Tilman Fertitta (Houston Rockets), John Paulson (Paulson & Co.), Thomas Siebel (Siebel Systems), among others.

Trump’s supporters also include tech mogul Elon Musk, who is actively baffled by him. Elon Musk appeared alongside Trump at a rally, whose America PAC is offering $47 for nominations from voters in swing states who sign a petition to “pledge support” for the First and Second Amendments.

Billionaires remain neutral (as of now)

While many billionaires openly support Harris or Trump, others are keeping their distance for now:

-Jeff Bezos, the founder of Amazon, praised Donald Trump’s resilience after he was shot at a campaign rally. But he has yet to publicly endorse a candidate.

-Warren Buffett is a well-known Democrat, but has yet to support a candidate in the US presidential election.

-Mark Zuckerberg reportedly had private discussions with Donald Trump but did not support either candidate.

-Bill Gates has not officially endorsed a candidate. However, in a July interview, he expressed positive feelings toward Harris, noting, “It’s great to have someone younger who can think about things like AI and how we shape that in the right way.”

-Jamie Dimon, CEO of JPMorgan Chase, the largest bank in the US, did not support any candidate, according to his spokesperson. However, last week, Trump shared a false social media post claiming Dimon’s endorsement.

-Sergey Brin, co-founder of Google, who previously found Trump’s election “deeply offensive” as an immigrant, has kept his feelings private during this election cycle.

Ray Dalio: Dalio, founder of the world’s largest hedge fund, Bridgewater Associates, told CNBC last month that it’s his “most important” election, but he won’t support Harris or Trump because he wants a more moderate candidate.

-Larry Ellison and Ken Griffin: Ellison and Griffin are perhaps the most surprising billionaires to remain silent in the final months of the presidential election cycle, considering they have both donated millions to Republican causes in the past.