Billionaire Donors Are Cool On Ron DeSantis Over Right-Wing Policies

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Powerful Republican donors and billionaires Ken Griffin and Nelson Peltz are reconsidering plans to support Ron DeSantis’ US presidential bid because of concerns that Florida’s governor has leaned too far to the right.

People familiar with his thinking told the Financial Times that he was discouraged by DeSantis’ interventionist policies. Griffin has objected to a recent moratorium on teaching about gender and sexuality and DeSantis’ ongoing battle with Disney, while Peltz has taken issue with his stance on abortion, the people said.

DeSantis, 44, was widely seen as the candidate best suited to challenge Donald Trump for the Republican nomination for president. But he has fallen in the polls recently and doubts are rising about the strategy behind his 2024 White House bid.

The backlash from donors such as hedge fund manager Griffin and Peltz, one of the largest taxpayers in Florida, could further hurt the DeSantis campaign. The pair was expected to be one of DeSantis’ biggest supporters.*

Griffin gave $5 million to DeSantis’ 2022 re-election effort and has been one of his most powerful and vocal supporters, previously praising his “tremendous record as governor of Florida”. But recently the hedge fund manager had become increasingly troubled by DeSantis’ policy initiatives that undermined individual rights and freedoms, said a person familiar with his thinking.

Griffin declined to comment on specific candidates, but told the FT: “As the presidential campaign unfolds, I am assessing how each candidate’s policies will strengthen our democracy.”

“I care about individual rights and freedoms, economic policies that encourage prosperity and upward mobility, ensuring children have access to high-quality education, ensuring the safety of our communities, and a strong national defense that secures the future of the United States and its allies,” he said.

Peltz, founder of the investment firm Trian Partners, lives in Palm Beach. He is also reconsidering his position. A person familiar with his thinking said, “Nelson Peltz thinks most of DeSantis’ policies are acceptable, but his position on abortion is very critical.” “This could undermine Peltz’s willingness to financially support DeSantis as a candidate.” Peltz declined to comment.

A record 69 percent of Americans support legal abortion during the first trimester of pregnancy, according to a recent report. Gallup poll,

The lack of vocal support from business figures once considered staunch supporters comes at a critical time for DeSantis, who attracted wealthy supporters last week with a fundraiser in Long Island’s affluent Hamptons district. Neither Griffin nor Peltz have met with the Florida governor or provided any financial support in the months since DeSantis announced his candidacy in May.

The DeSantis campaign has so far relied heavily on deep-pocketed donors. Federal Election Commission filings show that only one-sixth of the $20.1 million raised by DeSantis in the second quarter came from small donors. The candidate spent approximately $8 million on the five-week campaign.

In an effort to topple Trump, DeSantis has leaned sharply to the right on issues ranging from gay rights to abortion and immigration, a move that has begun to alienate some key supporters. In April he signed into law a six-week abortion ban in Florida, imposing some of the strictest restrictions in the country on the state that serves as the medical hub for the southeastern US.

Griffin, the founder of hedge fund Citadel and market maker Citadel Securities, announced last year that Citadel would relocate from Chicago to Miami, describing the city he had recently moved to with his family as a “growing metropolis that epitomizes the American dream.” By the end of summer, Citadel will employ approximately 250 people in Miami.

The financier disagrees with DeSantis’ ongoing battle with Disney over the “Don’t Say Gay” bill, which restricts school teaching about gender and sexuality. Florida’s governor has declared war on “Wok Disney”, the state’s largest employer and drawing millions of visitors to Orlando a year.

Griffin believes DeSantis’ battle with the entertainment conglomerate “sends the wrong message about doing business in Florida,” said a person familiar with his thinking. “The governor needs to focus on creating good jobs.”

Peltz, who called off the proxy battle with Disney’s board as early as 2023, remains a significant shareholder in the entertainment conglomerate.

Earlier this year Thomas Peterffy, the billionaire founder of Interactive Brokers and a top Republican donor, cited DeSantis’ position on abortion as one of his main reasons for stopping plans to finance the campaign.

“I’ve restrained myself,” he told the FT in April. “Because of his stance on abortion and book banning. , , Me and some of my friends are drying our powder.

DeSantis addressed the concerns at an evangelical conference earlier this month and acknowledged that his position has “lost a lot of big supporters”. “We stood up. We did what was right,” DeSantis said. “If I had the chance to do it over again, I would do it every day of the week and twice on Sunday.”

DeSantis campaign spokesman Andrew Romo expressed his gratitude to the “thousands of grassroots supporters – and major donors – who have made it possible for us to build an unrivaled organization . . . with the ability to compete over the long term”.

Additional reporting by Lauren Fedor in Washington

*This story has been modified to clarify that Ken Griffin was not a supporter of Donald Trump