11TH HOUR

Billionaire Drops Cash Bomb to Sink MAGA’s Must-Win Candidates

The late giving will allow Democrats to be “the only game in town” in some critical markets.

Michael Bloomberg has made a massive last-second donation to help Democrats in the midterms.

Bloomberg, 84, gave $36 million to Democratic political action committees and campaigns this week, Politico reported Friday, bringing his total giving this election cycle to more than $100 million.

The 2020 Democratic presidential candidate has given $16 million to House Majority PAC, mostly to fund television and streaming ads for races in ten districts. Some of those districts are Democratic-held seats, and some are seen as ripe to swipe from the GOP. Two are in Colorado, four in Florida, and one each in Nebraska, New York, Washington, and Wisconsin.

Bloomberg has also given $12 million to support eight candidates who once volunteered for Everytown for Gun Safety, the group he co-founded. Their races are in Arizona, Florida, Iowa, Michigan, and Pennsylvania.

Bloomberg has also dedicated his spending to gubernatorial and Senate races in Georgia, Texas, and Kansas.

Georgia gubernatorial candidate Keisha Lance Bottoms received $2.5 million, as did the Senate hopeful James Talarico. Bloomberg gave Kansas Senate candidate Adam Hamilton’s campaign $2 million. The Cook Political Report considers all three races as toss-ups.

Texas gubernatorial candidate Gina Hinojosa has also received $750,000 from Bloomberg, but the Cook Political Report still considers that race lean Republican.

Bloomberg’s political adviser, Howard Wolfson, told Politico the former New York mayor “believes in participation in our democracy.”

“And obviously the scale of his participation, given his resources and his means, is greater than other people’s financially. But other people are participating in different ways,” he added.

Bloomberg previously spent $80 million in September and October to help Democrats.

House Majority PAC President Mike Smith told Politico that the timing of Bloomberg’s spending “makes it harder for the other side to respond effectively.”

“There’s a strategy behind trying to do some of these late plays to put Republicans on their heels, and then also be the only game in town,” he explained.

After Bloomberg’s initial donation, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries said he believes it will be the death knell to Republicans’ already dire midterm chances.

“Mayor Bloomberg played an incredibly instrumental role in the decisive midterm election in 2018,” he said in a statement. “The extraordinary support from Mayor Bloomberg will once again help Democrats flip the House.”

Wolfson said Bloomberg does not just want Democrats to take control of the House, but for the party to enjoy a comfortable House majority.

“The difference between 221 and 230, in terms of the House majority, really matters,” he told The New York Times.

Democrats are heavily favored to retake the House; the question is by how much.

Another billionaire Democrat who has shelled out substantially this election cycle is Reid Hoffman, the LinkedIn co-founder. He has spent tens of millions of dollars, including $16.5 million for Talarico.

On the Republican side, Donald Trump’s super PAC and Elon Musk have dominated spending. MAGA Inc. reported spending $277 million since the beginning of September. Musk has given $475 million.

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William VaillancourtReporter

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