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Democratic megadonors George and Alex Soros have thrown their support behind Vice President Kamala Harris in the race against Republican nominee and former President Donald Trump.
President Joe Biden announced on Sunday that he was leaving the race and endorsed Harris to lead the Democratic Party in his place. The party has quickly coalesced around Harris in the 24 hours since the announcement.
George and Alex Soros spend tens of millions of dollars each election cycle. Shortly after Biden’s announcement on Sunday, Alex Soros shared an image with Harris and wrote: “It’s time for us all to unite around Kamala Harris and beat Donald Trump. She is the best and most qualified candidate we have. Long live the American Dream!”
George Soros, 93, also backs Harris, a Soros spokesperson said, according to The Wall Street Journal.
The investor and target of rightwing conspiracy theories handed control of his $25 billion empire to his son last year. Alex Soros, 38, who has described himself as a center-left thinker with a self-awareness of the family’s wealth, initially wasn’t thought to be a possible successor, the paper noted last year.
This comes as other billionaire donors are arguing for an open contest at the Democratic convention in Chicago next month.
The founder of Galaxy Digital Holdings, Mike Novogratz said, “That mini bake-off is going to get more press and publicity and coverage than anything in the whole world for the next month. America is ready to change,” according to Bloomberg.
Fellow Democratic donor and a former managing director at the investment firm DE Shaw Trey Beck called on Biden to step aside after his debate debacle in Atlanta on June 27. Beck is now calling for a contest to decide on the new nominee.
“Any person who emerges from that process is a stronger candidate,” he said. “They’ll have been vetted by the public, their positions will be out there, their rhetorical skills will have been sharpened.”
Beck, who has donated $66,600 to the Biden Victory Fund, added that if Harris would win such a contest, he “would walk on hot coals to see her elected president.”
Donations began flooding in after Biden announced that he was stepping down as the Democratic nominee.
The grassroots group Swing Left was founded on Trump’s inauguration day to elect Democrats to the House. It started a fund on Sunday to support the eventual nominee. Executive director Yasmin Radjy told Bloomberg that it raised $75,000 in the first hour and a half.
“What we don’t want is for the theorizing, the pundits, and all those conversations about an open process to slow down the deep commitment that grassroots funders have,” she told the outlet.
