None of the heads of American corporations want to part with their money, even to fund the presidential elections. According to Yahoo, this year, executives of US companies are trying to stay out of the presidential race. However, previously, they were more involved in this process.
Currently, the heads of 98 out of the 100 largest companies in the United States are not providing financial support to any of the candidates from the two main parties, Democratic and Republican. Top executives of American corporations have given presidential candidates only $88,000. The lion's share of this money went to Donald Trump's main rivals in the primaries.
According to Yahoo, none of the leading executives made a public donation to the eccentric billionaire. However, his rival is also having a tough time. Current data shows a low level of support for the incumbent president, Joe Biden. Only two major company leaders have donated money to the head of state. They are Sarah London from healthcare company Centene and Timothy Sweeney from Liberty Mutual Insurance Group.
The current data analysis is based on campaign finance reports provided by the executives of the 100 largest US companies. These top executives manage over 16 million employees and lead firms valued at $26 trillion.
Experts note a trend towards reduced involvement of company leaders in presidential elections in the current electoral cycle. Nevertheless, both Joe Biden and Donald Trump have supporters in the business world. The latter is backed by Steve Schwarzman, CEO of Blackstone Inc, and venture capitalist David Sacks. Meanwhile, LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman is an active supporter of the incumbent president.
However, most of the world's largest companies are staying out of the election race and are not financing anyone. Some have not put a single cent into the public donation pool, not supporting any presidential candidates. This group includes some of the biggest names in corporate America, from the CEOs of Apple and Walmart to Citigroup and Walt Disney.
At the same time, information about the government financing campaign can be hidden. Top executives can make donations to anonymous groups, which are not required to disclose this information. Currently, company leaders have allocated more than $350,000 to various groups dealing with economic and political issues, mostly related to business.
Company leaders can also be actively involved in political discussions without sponsoring candidates. For example, Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla, constantly posts criticism of Joe Biden and communicates with Donald Trump. However, according to Musk, he does not donate money to any of the candidates for the American presidency.
The current analysis unveiled minimal financial support for presidential candidates in the 2024 elections. Meanwhile, almost $1.7 million has been raised for US congressional candidates from company leaders.
The money these top executives allocate goes to the American Congress, where control of both chambers is not total, and lawmakers' actions cover a wide range of issues. At the same time, a Harvard Business School study from 2022 showed that almost 70% of top executives of S&P 500 companies identify as Republicans. Thus, donations in this election season lean in favor of Republicans, but many are ready to finance Democrats.