Bill Gates is joining Elon Musk in spending tens of millions of dollars to back his preferred presidential candidate.
They’re not the same candidate.
According to a report Tuesday in the New York Times, the founder of Microsoft has donated about $50 million to a “dark money” group backing the candidacy of Vice President Kamala Harris.
Citing “three people briefed on the matter,” the Times reported that Mr. Gates sent the money to the pro-Harris fundraising group Future Forward.
“Mr. Gates has talked about his pro-Harris donation with his peers, including Mike Bloomberg, the former New York City mayor and a major supporter of Future Forward who has considered a similarly sized gift,” the Times wrote, citing “two of the people briefed.”
Future Forward does not have to disclose its donors as a 501(c)(4) organization and, the Times reported, the donation was intended to stay private.
According to the Times report, Mr. Gates has “expressed concern” about events under a second term for former President Donald Trump, including potential cuts “to family planning and global health programs.”
Mr. Gates, the Times noted, has generally avoided public partisanship, sending most of his donations to charitable outfits and to issue causes such as climate change.
He has not publicly endorsed Ms. Harris.
In a statement to the New York Times in response to an early version of its story, Mr. Gates neither confirmed nor denied the donation.
“I support candidates who demonstrate a clear commitment to improving health care, reducing poverty and fighting climate change in the U.S. and around the world,” he said. “I have a long history of working with leaders across the political spectrum, but this election is different, with unprecedented significance for Americans and the most vulnerable people around the world.”
The report on Mr. Gates’ dark-money donation came just days after multiple news outlets reported that Mr. Musk had poured at least $75 million into a pro-Trump super PAC.
The political press referred to such spending by the world’s richest man, a moniker that long had applied to Mr. Gates, as an unusual development.
Business Insider, for example, saying in its headline that “Elon Musk is flexing his wealth and political power unlike any of the richest men before him.”
• Victor Morton can be reached at vmorton@washingtontimes.com.
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