The biggest individual contributions to Donald Trump's and Robert F. Kennedy Jr's 2024 presidential Super PACs in January both came from the same longtime Republican mega-donor, according to filings.
Timothy Mellon, heir to the Mellon banking fortune, donated $5 million to the Trump-aligned MAGA Inc. fundraising attempts in January, as well $5 million to a Super PAC supporting the Democrat-turned-independent's presidential bid the same month, Federal Election Commission (FEC) listings reveal.
Mellon, the grandson of former U.S. treasury secretary Andrew Mellon, is known to be a longtime donor to Republicans such as Trump. He gave $20 million to the Trump-aligned America First Action Super PAC in 2020.
Mellon first donated to a Super PAC supporting Kennedy Jr.'s White House bid, American Values 2024, last July when the son of former Senator Bobby Kennedy and nephew of the former President John F. Kennedy was still running as a Democrat.
Mellon gave American Values a total of $15 million in 2023, according to FEC filings, covering a period when Kennedy Jr. ran as a Democratic and independent presidential candidate. The billionaire was also found to have donated $10 million to the Trump-aligned MAGA Inc. in the second half of last year, making him the largest contributor to both Super PACs.
Trump and Kennedy Jr.'s campaign teams have been contacted via email for comment.
Reacting to multimillion dollar donations from Mellon, Alex Floyd, rapid response director for the Democratic National Committee (DNC), said in a statement: "Today's news that Donald Trump's largest donor has given another $5 million to RFK Jr.'s Super PAC confirms what we already knew: RFK Jr. is a stalking horse for Trump in this election."
Earlier this month, the DNC placed billboards in Michigan which noted that both Kennedy Jr. and Trump were being backed by the same billionaire donor.
"RFK Jr. powered by MAGA/Trump. Same biggest donor Timothy Mellon," the billboards read.
In a previous statement, a spokesperson for Kennedy Jr.'s campaign told Newsweek: "Donors from across the political spectrum are supporting the Kennedy campaign as they are tired of the corruption in the two-party system.
"Instead, donors want an independent candidate who will heal the divide, restore the middle class, end the forever wars, unravel corporate capture, and end the chronic disease epidemic."
January's FEC filings show that Trump's official campaign donations are trailing those of President Joe Biden.
Trump ended last month with just over $30 million cash in hand, down from the $33 million he reported at the end of 2023.
In comparison, Biden's campaign managed to raise more than $42 million in January, bringing their available cash to $130 million heading into the 2024 election.
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Ewan Palmer is a Newsweek News Reporter based in London, U.K. His focus is reporting on US politics, domestic policy ... Read more
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