Some major Republican donors who have spent much of 2023 searching for an alternative to Donald Trump are now embracing the idea of Trump as the party’s 2024 nominee. Ed Broyhill, a longtime GOP donor, previously considered supporting other candidates like Ron DeSantis and Mike Pence but has now firmly thrown his support behind Trump. Broyhill believes that none of the other candidates come close to matching Trump’s level of support.
This shift in support is not limited to Broyhill. Other notable donors who previously funded Trump’s campaigns are once again writing checks for him. Harold Hamm, a prominent Oklahoma oil and natural gas magnate, was once considered one of Trump’s top advisers on energy policy before their falling out. Hamm has recently contributed to Trump’s campaign, although his spokesperson emphasizes that this does not indicate a change in his position. Scott Bessent, a South Carolina hedge fund manager, initially gave to Pence and Tim Scott before donating to Trump last month. Susan and Howard Groff, significant California donors in 2020, also initially supported DeSantis, Pence, and Scott before ultimately contributing to Trump.
Trump’s few remaining allies in the business community have been working hard to rally donors back to Trump’s side. New York Jets owner Woody Johnson, along with other Trump allies, has been lobbying donors who once supported Trump. The hope is that these donors will come home and support Trump once again. However, the widespread support won’t fully activate until Trump starts winning primary contests.
Although some anti-Trump GOP donors have gathered to consider other candidates like DeSantis, Haley, and Scott, many Trump-skeptical donors are showing an openness to raising money for him again. This shift in support can be attributed, in part, to Republican anger towards President Biden’s economic policies and his response to the terrorist attacks in Israel. Ultimately, the driving force behind this renewed support for Trump is the desire to win back the White House.
Trump has been outperforming his rivals financially, primarily due to robust support from small donors. He raised $24.5 million in the recent quarter, surpassing his closest competitor, DeSantis, whose campaign raised $11.2 million. However, some donors who previously contributed to DeSantis have now started writing checks for Trump, signaling a shift in their support. The quarterly reports also reveal that many donors who were once supporting Trump’s opponents are now donating to his campaign.
While the movement of donors isn’t one-directional, with some donors still contributing to other candidates like DeSantis, many traditional donors are gravitating towards Trump. They have concluded that investing in other candidates during the primary is a waste of money. Despite this shift in donor support, super PACs supporting the candidates have yet to file their reports covering the second half of 2023, so it is unclear how much larger checks donors have written to these outside groups.
Ed McMullen, who is raising money for Trump’s campaign, has noticed an uptick in phone calls from donors who want to show their renewed support for Trump. McMullen says that many former DeSantis and Haley supporters are coming around to Trump because they believe it is the most strategic move. According to a memo from Rob Collins, a co-chair of Trust in the Mission PAC, Trump’s substantial lead in polls has caused the PAC to cancel TV ad reservations, acknowledging that the electorate is not yet focused on or ready for a Trump alternative.
