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1/18
The fact that the US election campaign was by far the most expensive in history, at more than 14 billion dollars, is due to many small donors - but also to people like him:
Mike Bloomberg
(78) crashed
with his own application for US President
.
The former New York mayor and founder of the financial information service of the same name has put more than a billion dollars in his own fortune.
At least $ 100 million in support of fellow party member Joe Biden (77) in the shaky state of Florida should be a better investment.
Most recently, Bloomberg transferred the remaining $ 18 million to the Democratic Party, thereby giving up its own political enterprise.
Photo: JOHANNES EISELE / AFP
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2/18
The former Silicon Valley financier
Tom Steyer
(63) also ran unsuccessfully and used almost $ 400 million for it.
Since the summer, Steyer has organized several million donation galas for Biden with his climate protection initiative.
So that Biden can make a difference as president, Steyer also made donations for democratic candidates who can take the Republicans' majority in the Senate.
Photo: Mark Makela / REUTERS
3/18
Billionaires don't fit the Democrats' political agenda well, and Biden didn't advertise their support either.
Nevertheless, Forbes magazine found 150 billionaires among the major donors for Biden - compared to only 108 for the billionaire-friendly Trump.
Members of the Hyatt hotel owner family Pritzker appear on the list several times.
JB Pritzker
(55) is the Governor of Illinois and is currently the richest political officer in America.
Photo: Ashlee Rezin / Chicago Sun-Times via AP
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4/18
LinkedIn co-founder
Reid Hoffman
(53) donated a good 100 million dollars for the election campaign - but most of it bypassed the Democratic Party.
Hoffman only got into political business in response to Trump's 2016 election victory, but then in Silicon Valley style with radical disruption.
His "Innovation Fund for the Resistance" directs flows of money at its own discretion to where it should bring the most to beat Trump.
In Swing State Wisconsin, the local party is committed to the Hoffman Mission.
Photo: Phillip Faraone / AFP
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5/18
The long-time Google boss
Eric Schmidt
(65) is one of the major donors of Hoffman's new, liberal network, which wants to achieve on the side of the Democrats what the conservative-libertarian influence groups of multi-billionaire Charles Koch and his late brother David have been doing with the Republicans for decades .
Incidentally, Charles Koch did not let his organization get involved in the re-election of Trump.
Photo: Alex Wong / Getty Images
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6/18
There is now more money to be had in Silicon Valley, especially for Biden's Democrats.
The first eBay employee
Jeff Skoll
(55) donated more than five million dollars.
He enjoys more influence as a political filmmaker.
Photo: Matt Winkelmeyer / Getty Images North America
7/18
Ex-Microsoft boss and basketball club owner
Steve Ballmer
(64) and his wife Connie Ballmer have also entered the election campaign with $ 7.7 million - mainly through an initiative for firearms control.
This includes donations to Democrats to drive gun-friendly Republicans out of parliament.
Photo: AP
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8/18
The most important source of money for both parties is still Wall Street - and even here the Democrats have an advantage in 2020, if not as clearly as on Wall Street.
Hedge fund veteran
Jim Simons,
82, donated more than $ 20 million, in addition to nearly $ 1 million for Biden's campaign, mainly to candidates for the Senate.
Photo: Andrew Toth / AFP
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9/18
Hedge fund colleague
George Soros
(90), himself an object of political dispute in many countries of the world because of his foundation activities, hardly attracts attention in the US election campaign with his $ 8.7 million.
Most of the money goes to the Democrats conventionally through funds called PACs, without Soros having much say in the distribution of the funds.
Photo: FABRICE COFFRINI / AFP
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10/18
Fashion designer
Diane von Fürstenberg
(73) and media and internet entrepreneur
Barry Diller
(78) are a power couple of fundraisers for the Democrats.
Out of pocket came $ 1.2 million, half of it for Biden.
It's hard to believe: Diller once founded the television station Fox, which is now fueling Trump's fan base.
Photo: Drew Angerer / AFP
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11/18
Hollywood was a Democratic bastion long before Trump.
Filmmaker
Steven Spielberg
(73) donated $ 4.5 million this season, 600,000 of which went to Biden.
Photo:
MARK RALSTON / AFP
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12/18
On the part of
Donald Trump
(74) it is not exactly lonely, but significantly fewer billionaires opened their checkbooks.
One person in particular is noticeably missing from the list of donors: Trump himself. In the late phase of the election campaign, the president sounded that he could finance his lagging campaign out of his own pocket if necessary - as was the case with his ascent in 2016. However, Trump officially has no access to his real estate company In addition, reports of a "cash crunch" for the campaign as well as for private business have recently accumulated.
Photo: BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI / AFP
13/18
One casino mogul steps aside the other (former) casino mogul - especially now that casinos are among the worst businesses in the corona crisis.
Sheldon Adelson
(87), who in the past led the republicans' list of donations several times, but turned away disappointed after the 2012 election defeat and only donated specifically to ban online casinos, this time raised 128.5 million dollars, including 1, $ 2 million for Trump.
Photo: © Tyrone Siu / Reuters / REUTERS
14/18
Blackstone boss
Stephen Schwarzman
(73) is loyal to Donald Trump and continues to serve him as an advisor, even if the economic advisory board led by Schwarzman was dissolved at the beginning of Trump's tenure after numerous resignations by manager colleagues.
Schwarzman invested a whopping $ 28.7 million in the election, most of it for senators like Lindsey Graham.
Photo: John Moore / Getty Images
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15/18
Bernie Marcus
(91) has made a name for himself as the founder of the home improvement chain The Home Depot.
His $ 10.5 million flowed mainly into the closest Senate races in states like Maine and Arizona.
If the Republicans could at least hold this Chamber of Parliament, it would be the greatest guarantee against major reforms (and tax plans) by President Biden.
Photo: Barry Williams / Getty Images
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16/18
Linda McMahon
(72) has run for the Senate herself, but lost.
The wrestling entrepreneur has more success with husband and Trump friend Vince by supporting Trump.
The President brought the major donor into the cabinet as the person responsible for the middle class - until she went straight to the election campaign as the head of a Pro-Trump-Pac.
This time McMahon donated another $ 5.6 million himself.
Photo: MIKE SEGAR / REUTERS
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17/18
The fact that even Texas is no longer a safe bastion for the Republicans irritates oil and gas
entrepreneurs
such as
Kelcy Warren
(55), founder and head of the pipeline company Energy Partners, whose board also includes ex-energy minister Rick Perry.
Warren supports Trump and Texas Senator John Cornyn with $ 13.3 million.
Photo: Racsoagrafal / wikimedia.org
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18/18
In Silicon Valley, where fortunes grew particularly strongly during the Trump era, rich supporters of the president are hard to find.
Oracle founder
Larry Ellison
(76) donated a quarter of a million dollars in October for Senator Lindsey Graham from South Carolina, who helped orchestrate the Oracle deal with the Trump-threatened Chinese app TikTok - even if this deal is again highly questionable.
Photo: Mike Segar / REUTERS
Sources: Forbes, Opensecrets
ak