Powerful venture capitalists and Wall Street execs, including Mark Cuban and James Murdoch, have pledged support for Kamala Harris.
Vice President Kamala Harris hasn’t had any trouble raising money — in fact, she has raked in $1 billion between July and September. In just the month of September, her campaign and its allies raised $378 million, more than double the Trump campaign and its affiliates’ roughly $160 million haul.
Though some of her money comes from grassroots donors, billionaires and private sector leaders have dumped eye-popping sums into her campaign. A Forbes analysis found that 82 billionaires have backed Harris, compared to 52 backing Trump.
Venture capitalists were among some of the earliest tech moguls to organize behind Harris, even as the once decidedly liberal Silicon Valley splinters this election. As figures like Elon Musk, Marc Andreessen, and David Sacks publicly backed former President Donald Trump, a group of powerful venture capitalists combined forces to declare their support for Harris through an effort dubbed «VCsForKamala.»
As of the end of October, 866 venture capitalists pledged to vote and solicit donations for Harris through the group’s website. As of late August, the signatories represented a combined $276 billion in assets under management, according to the group’s founders.
«We are pro-business, pro-American dream, pro-entrepreneurship, and pro-technological progress», reads a statement on the VCsForKamala’s website. «We also believe in democracy as the backbone of our nation.»
A Business Insider analysis of the limited publicly available FEC data shows that VCs favored Democrats. Andreessen Horowitz, or a16z, donated $47 million to various groups backing crypto-friendly candidates this election cycle.
Harris, who was born in Oakland, has garnered support from dozens of leaders in her backyard supportive of her pro-business policies. In September, the effort by business and tech leaders stretched from coast to coast. A group of 88 prominent Wall Street and tech executives jointly signed a letter endorsing Harris, writing that she is «the best way to support continued strength, security, and reliability of our democracy and economy.» The leaders also celebrated her support for small businesses.
In October, private sector titans banned together to launch «Business Leaders for Harris», an effort to woo more conservative-leaning voters by emphasizing Harris’ economic strengths.
Here are some of the biggest names on the VCsForKamala list and other leading corporate leaders backing Harris.Mark Cuban
The billionaire, Shark Tank star, and former principal owner of the Dallas Mavericks is one of the most well-known signatories of both VCsForKamala and the corporate letter. Valued at $5.4 billion according to Forbes, Cuban voted for Nikki Haley in the 2024 GOP primaries but later attended a Biden fundraiser, ABC News reported. He’s become one of the Harris campaigns most active private sector surrogates and is part of «Business Leaders for Harris.»
He vowed to support Biden after his disastrous debate performance but said hewas interested in whether other Democrats were better positioned to beat Trump. He was one of the quickest to react when Biden dropped his reelection bid, writing on X, «Father time is undefeated.»
Cuban has retweeted various posts about Harris’ campaign, including one saying that Democrats had «some well-needed momentum.» He anticipates that she will be more open to business, artificial intelligence, and crypto, Politico reported.Reid Hoffman
Reid Hoffman, a LinkedIn cofounder and longtime Democratic donor, wasted no time throwing his weight behind Harris, offering his support for her campaign the same day that Biden ended his. Of the president, he said that dropping out was «one of the most selfless acts we’ve seen from a politician in modern American history.»
In January, Hoffman poured $2 million into a super PAC that led a write-in campaign in New Hampshire for Biden’s campaign. The Information first reported that Hoffman pushed Reed Hastings, Netflix chairman, to donate $7 million to a PAC supporting Harris.
He has openly sparred with business and tech leaders, namely David Sacks, who support Trump. He plans to host a fundraiser for Harris and has signed both the VCsForKamala and letter of executives. He is also involved in «Business Leaders for Harris» and hosts the initiative’s podcast.Bill Gates
The New York Times reported that Bill Gates said he gave about $50 million to the pro-Harris super-PAC nonprofit arm of Future Forward. Gates did not confirm or deny the donation, though the Times reported that Gates discussed the donation with figures including former New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg.
Gates has chosen in the past not to make large political donations, though he has spoken in support of Harris.Michael Bloomberg
Former New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg donated $50 million to Future Forward USA Action, a nonprofit backing Harris, The New York Times reported. Those familiar with Bloomberg’s decision said the donation occurred after months of pressure from leading Harris supporters, including Hoffman and Gates.
Bloomberg donated about $95 million to help Democrats take control of Congress in 2018. In total, he gave over $250 million in the 2018 and 2020 election cycles. Bloomberg has had a history of donating late to campaigns.James Murdoch
The former CEO of 21st Century Fox broke even farther away from his father, media mogul Rupert Murdoch, and added his name to the list of CEOs endorsing Harris. It was the first time he publicly declared his support for the vice president.
Murdoch is far more politically moderate than his dad and his older brother, Lachlan. He has donated hundreds of thousands to Democratic congressional candidates, according the Federal Election Commission records. James Murdoch is currently locked in a real-life succession battle over the future over his family’s media empire, which includes Fox News and the Wall Street Journal.Reed Hastings
The Netflix co-founder is also part of «Business Leaders for Harris» — in his video testimonial for the group, Hastings said he’s gotten to know Harris over the past decade and knows «she will be a great president for business.
