Bill Gates has donated $50 million to Kamala Harris’ campaign, a political backing that was originally intended to be private.
The Microsoft founder confirmed the donation to The New York Times on Tuesday, saying “this election is different,” although he is still not endorsing Harris publicly.
“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 in a statement. “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.”
Two people close to the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, as the Times phrased it, “expressed concern about what a second Donald Trump presidency would look like.” Among the issues where the philanthropic organization tallies with Harris is on preventing cuts to family planning and global health programs.
Gates made his donation to Future Forward, a fundraising group supporting Harris, according to the Times’ report. Sources told the outlet that the tech giant had discussed his donation with former New York City mayor and one-time Democratic presidential hopeful Mike Bloomberg, who “has considered a similarly sized gift.”
Conservative politicians Gates has previously backed include Alaskan Sen. Lisa Murkowski’s Denali Leadership PAC and Arizona’s Charles Horne, according to OpenSecrets. But in the last two years, he has primarily donated to Democrats, including Joe Biden, Pete Buttigieg, Elizabeth Warren and Cory Booker.
An OpenSecrets graph shows that in 2018, he donated more than twice as much to Republican candidates ($4.72 million) as he did to their Democratic opponents ($2.18 million).
On the other side of the political spectrum, X owner and fellow billionaire Elon Musk has pledged to spend $140 million to get GOP rival Donald Trump re-elected.