Donald Trump said he didn’t need anyone’s money when he started his 2016 presidential campaign, which cost him $66 million. He said, ‘I’m not using donors.’
However, he did use some donors in 2016, but not as much as he is now. So far, Trump hasn’t given any of his own money to his current campaign. Instead, other billionaires have given millions to groups that support him and other candidates.
The top 10 billionaire donors, who have always supported Trump, have already given $123 million to groups supporting him, according to the latest Federal Election Commission reports. These billionaires are worth over $55 billion combined, so they still have a lot of money left. Expect more big donations over the next five months as America decides if Trump should be president again. Biden could quickly get ahead of Trump.
1. Timothy Mellon
Donations to Trump groups: $76.5 million | Net worth: $1 billion+
Timothy Mellon, from the wealthy Mellon family with about $14 billion dating back to the Gilded Age, made headlines by giving $50 million to a pro-Trump super-PAC the day after Trump was convicted of 34 felonies.
Mellon, who also gave $20 million to a Trump group in 2020, started a computer-programming company in the 1960s. He later bought railroads and created a company, which he sold in 2022 for $600 million. He has also spent over $1 million searching for Amelia Earhart’s plane wreckage.
2. Linda McMahon (spouse of Vince McMahon)
Donations to Trump groups: $11.1 million | Net worth: $2.9 billion
Linda McMahon’s husband, Vince, built the regional wrestling league into the World Wrestling Entertainment empire. She led the Small Business Administration during Trump’s first term. She left to co-chair Trump’s main super-PAC before the 2020 election. Vince resigned as executive chairman of WWE’s parent company in January due to sexual misconduct allegations.
Now, Linda McMahon, who ran for Senate in Connecticut in 2010 and 2012, leads the Trump-supporting nonprofit America First Policy Institute (with Fox Business host Larry Kudlow as vice chair). She is also on the board of the Trump Media and Technology Group.
3. Kelcy Warren
Donations to Trump groups: $5.8 million | Net worth: $6.3 billion
Warren is the executive chairman of Energy Transfer, the company that owns the Dakota Access Pipeline, which Trump sped up after becoming president in 2017. The oil started flowing later that year.
Warren, who donated $100,000 to support Trump’s 2016 campaign, has stayed loyal to Trump. He gave over $11 million for Trump’s reelection and has already given nearly $6 million to pro-Trump groups this year.
4. Diane Hendricks
Donations to Trump groups: $5.5 million | Net worth: $20.9 billion
Donald Trump didn’t care much when former Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker left the presidential race in 2015. He jokingly told his campaign manager, Corey Lewandowski, to see if they could get Walker’s one vote. Trump eventually attracted Walker’s key supporter, Diane Hendricks, the richest self-made woman in America.
Hendricks, who helped raise funds for Trump in 2016, gave over $6 million during the 2020 campaign and has already donated $5.5 million this time. She was a former Playboy bunny and co-founded ABC Supply with her late husband Ken, growing it into a $20 billion construction materials company.
5. Timothy Dunn
Donations to Trump groups: $5 million | Net worth: $2.2 billion
Dunn made his fortune in the West Texas oil fields, where he started a private well-operating company called CrownQuest. He began donating to Trump in 2020 but has increased his contributions this time.
In December, Dunn gave $5 million to Trump’s biggest super-PAC. He has also donated $2.5 million to other Republican groups, including those supporting Indiana Representative Jim Banks and Florida Senator Rick Scott.
6. Elizabeth Uihlein
Donations to Trump groups: $5 million | Net worth: $6.6 billion
7. Richard Uihlein
Donations to Trump groups: $5 million | Net worth: $6.6 billion
Elizabeth and Richard Uihlein started their Wisconsin-based packaging materials company, Uline, in their basement in 1980. Now, it makes $6.1 billion in yearly sales, and they are worth a combined $13.2 billion. Their money has become important for Republican campaigns recently—Richard gave $84 million for the 2022 midterms alone.
They have mostly supported Trump, giving over $500,000 to a pro-Trump group in 2016 and over $1 million in 2020. However, Richard also gave $2 million to a group opposing Trump in the 2016 primary, and last year, they donated $3 million to a super-PAC supporting Ron DeSantis, Trump’s challenger. Now, they fully support Trump, each giving $5 million to his main super-PAC last month.
8. Phil Ruffin
Donations to Trump groups: $3.3 million | Net worth: $2.6 billion
Few billionaires are as close to Trump as Ruffin, who co-owns the Trump International Hotel in Las Vegas with him. When Trump couldn’t get more money from Deutsche Bank during his 2016 campaign, he and Ruffin took out a $30 million loan against the Vegas hotel. In the next six weeks, Trump put $12 million of his own money into his campaign.
This amount is small for Ruffin, whose $2.6 billion empire includes the Treasure Island and Circus Circus casinos on the Vegas Strip. Ruffin, who married his wife Oleksandra at Mar-a-Lago with Trump as his best man, has already donated more to pro-Trump groups for the 2024 cycle than he did in the last two elections combined.
9. Geoffrey Palmer
Donations to Trump groups: $3 million | Net worth: $3.1 billion
Palmer is one of the biggest landlords in Los Angeles, owning over 11,000 apartments. He has been involved in politics for a long time. In the 1990s, his company was fined for illegally funneling California campaign funds to avoid contribution limits.
Nowadays, election rules are looser, and Palmer can donate as much as he wants to federal elections. He gave $6.3 million to Trump super-PACs in 2016 and $10.5 million in 2020. He has already donated $3 million for the 2024 election.
10. Robert “Woody” Johnson
Donations to Trump groups: $2.7 million | Net worth: $3.2 billion
The New York Jets owner, who is an heir to healthcare giant Johnson & Johnson, served as Trump’s ambassador to the United Kingdom. Trump reportedly asked him to try to get the British Open for Trump Turnberry, a historic golf course Trump bought two-and-a-half years before becoming president.
Johnson didn’t succeed in getting the Open, but he has stayed loyal to Trump, attracting big-money Republicans who turned away after the January 6 riot, according to CNBC. Johnson has given $1.9 million to groups supporting Trump this cycle, and his wife Suzanne has added over $800,000.
Summary
Donald Trump paid $66 million for his 2016 campaign, saying he didn’t need other people’s money. But he did get some donor help back then. Now, instead of his own money, other billionaires are giving millions to support him and other candidates. These top 10 donors, worth over $55 billion, have already given $123 million to support Trump. They’re expected to give more in this election.
