• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia

Trendingnow

1

As Big Tech showers employees with perks to win the talent war, Nvidia built a nearly $5 trillion company by making people pay for their own lunch

2

MacKenzie Scott alone accounted for one-third of America's $19.2 billion in megagifts last year

3

The Supreme Court's birthright citizenship ruling hands the U.S. economy a $7.7 trillion win

1

As Big Tech showers employees with perks to win the talent war, Nvidia built a nearly $5 trillion company by making people pay for their own lunch

2

MacKenzie Scott alone accounted for one-third of America's $19.2 billion in megagifts last year

3

The Supreme Court's birthright citizenship ruling hands the U.S. economy a $7.7 trillion win
Finance

Hedge Funds Are Spending More Money Than Ever to Influence Elections

By
Jen Wieczner
Jen Wieczner
Down Arrow Button Icon
By
Jen Wieczner
Jen Wieczner
Down Arrow Button Icon
October 26, 2016, 4:19 PM ET
Republican Presidential Candidate Donald Trump Rally Aboard The USS Iowa
Photograph by Patrick T. Fallon — Bloomberg/Getty Images
Add Fortune on Google for similar content.

Wall Street is giving more money than ever to influence the outcome of the 2016 elections—but hardly any of it is going to Donald Trump. And that’s doubly true of the elite managers of the nation’s 1% and giant retirement plans.

So far, hedge funds and their employees have contributed more than $173 million towards political campaigns for the 2016 election, more than triple the amount they gave during the last presidential election cycle in 2012, and more than eight times their contributions in 2008, according to data from the Center for Responsive Politics (on which AFR based its report).

The financial sector, in general, has spent nearly $800 million on political campaigns this election season, up about 35% since the 2008 election cycle, and hedge funds have written the largest checks, according to a new report by the non-profit Americans for Financial Reform.

Still, while Fortune wrote in August that Trump appeared to be attracting more money from hedge fund managers including Carl Icahn, gaining ground on the industry’s support for its favorite presidential pick Hillary Clinton, broader support for Trump apparently failed to materialize. Big-money investors are either throwing their weight behind Democratic nominee Clinton or focusing their efforts on Congressional races rather than the presidential election, the study shows.

And while hedge funds used to lean left in their campaign finance activities, only 42% of their 2016 contributions went to Democrats, while 58% have gone to Republicans. That makes it all the more remarkable that GOP nominee Donald Trump has managed to win so little of them.

Including contributions from both hedge funds and private equity firms, Trump and groups supporting him have commanded $239,250, a more than 100-fold increase from the mere $2,054 he’d received in the first half of this year, according to the CFRP’s latest data. But at the same time, Clinton has managed to win another $20 million from those funds, bringing her total hedge fund and PE firm haul to $45.2 million, up from the $25.6 million reported over the summer.

Indeed, Clinton is the top beneficiary of the industry’s political contributions, while Trump doesn’t even rank among the top 10 recipients. After Clinton, hedge fund favorites included Marco Rubio, Jeb Bush, and Chris Christie, all Republicans. The data tracks the spending in the primary as well as the general election.

The leading hedge fund campaign financiers have largely withheld their support from Trump—even the ones that support Republican platforms. Take the biggest hedge fund political donor, Renaissance Technologies, which was also the industry’s leading campaign contributor in the 2012 presidential election. Renaissance has given more than $42 million to finance political campaigns, with more than $15 million of that coming from the hedge fund’s co-CEO Robert Mercer to back a PAC called Make America Number 1. While that PAC originally supported Ted Cruz’s presidential campaign, it switched to Trump after Cruz dropped out of the race, and Renaissance’s donations stopped shortly thereafter. Renaissance’s founder James Simons, on the other hand, has given nearly as much in support of Hillary Clinton—making the hedge fund’s overall contributions almost evenly split between parties.

Meanwhile Paul Singer’s hedge fund Elliott Management, the industry’s third largest political campaign donor, has directed roughly 99% of its more than $24 million in campaign contributions to Republicans—but Trump didn’t make the list. In fact, Elliott gave $2.5 million to an anti-Trump group called Our Principles PAC, according to the Center for Responsive Politics. Clinton herself even scooped up nearly $20,000 in direct contributions from the hedge fund.

Citadel, the Chicago-based hedge fund led by Ken Griffin, is also one of the industry’s top-five political donors, contributing more than $10 million almost exclusively to Republicans, But even it has given nearly $18,000 directly to Clinton while snubbing Trump. (While Griffin has given nearly $600,000 to groups that now support Trump, including Future45 and the Republican National Committee, he wrote those checks long before Trump received the GOP nomination.)

Other leading hedge fund campaign contributors have favored Democratic candidates, including billionaire George Soros’ family office Soros Fund Management and Paloma Partners, which has stepped up its support of pro-Clinton groups just in the last month or so.

Hedge funds, because of their recent lackluster performance, may not be an influential when it comes to the market. But that is not stopping the people who run those firms from using their accumulated wealth to keep a large hand the levers of power.

About the Author
By Jen Wieczner
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon
Add Fortune on Google for similar content.

Latest in Finance

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Fortune Secondary Logo
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • World's Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
  • Lists Calendar
Sections
  • Finance
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Features
  • Leadership
  • Health
  • Commentary
  • Success
  • Retail
  • Mpw
  • Tech
  • Lifestyle
  • CEO Initiative
  • Asia
  • Politics
  • Conferences
  • Europe
  • Newsletters
  • Personal Finance
  • Environment
  • Magazine
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
  • Group Subscriptions
About Us
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • Pinterest icon

Latest in Finance

Trump’s 927-page disclosure is just a normal Tuesday for direct indexing and crypto wealth managers
InvestingDonald Trump
Trump’s 927-page disclosure is just a normal Tuesday for direct indexing and crypto wealth managers
By Catherina GioinoJuly 1, 2026
6 hours ago
US President Donald Trump sits in silence with his hands folded on top of each other.
CryptoDonald Trump
Inside Trump’s $1.4 billion crypto empire: Altcoins, Bitcoin—and a stake in Michael Saylor’s Strategy
By Camila Grigera NaónJuly 1, 2026
7 hours ago
Mark Zandi, Moody's chief economist.
EconomyU.S. economy
‘It’s fair to ask whether it was worth it’: The Iran war has cost Americans $1,000 per household—and that’s a conservative estimate, Mark Zandi says
By Tristan BoveJuly 1, 2026
10 hours ago
Melania Trump NFT earnings surge 28x in 2025 as the First Lady rakes in nearly $17 million in total earnings, filing shows
PoliticsDonald Trump
Melania Trump NFT earnings surge 28x in 2025 as the First Lady rakes in nearly $17 million in total earnings, filing shows
By Mia OsmonbekovJuly 1, 2026
10 hours ago
Donald Trump sits at his desk in the Oval Office, smiling and with his hands folded in front of him.
PoliticsDonald Trump
Trump got a $78K pension from the Screen Actors Guild in 2025 because he appeared in Home Alone 2 in 1992
By Sasha RogelbergJuly 1, 2026
12 hours ago
Current price of Bitcoin for July 1, 2026
Personal FinanceCryptocurrency
Current price of Bitcoin for July 1, 2026
By Joseph HostetlerJuly 1, 2026
16 hours ago

Most Popular

As Big Tech showers employees with perks to win the talent war, Nvidia built a nearly $5 trillion company by making people pay for their own lunch
Big Tech
As Big Tech showers employees with perks to win the talent war, Nvidia built a nearly $5 trillion company by making people pay for their own lunch
By Marco Quiroz-GutierrezJuly 1, 2026
22 hours ago
MacKenzie Scott alone accounted for one-third of America's $19.2 billion in megagifts last year
Success
MacKenzie Scott alone accounted for one-third of America's $19.2 billion in megagifts last year
By Sydney LakeJune 25, 2026
7 days ago
The Supreme Court's birthright citizenship ruling hands the U.S. economy a $7.7 trillion win
Newsletters
The Supreme Court's birthright citizenship ruling hands the U.S. economy a $7.7 trillion win
By Diane BradyJuly 1, 2026
20 hours ago
Philanthropy leader at Warren Buffett and Bill Gates’ Giving Pledge says children of billionaires are pushing them to give their wealth away faster
Success
Philanthropy leader at Warren Buffett and Bill Gates’ Giving Pledge says children of billionaires are pushing them to give their wealth away faster
By Preston ForeJune 27, 2026
5 days ago
Current price of oil as of July 1, 2026
Personal Finance
Current price of oil as of July 1, 2026
By Joseph HostetlerJuly 1, 2026
16 hours ago
Elon Musk on MacKenzie Scott giving away $26 billion of her fortune: 'Sadly,' it makes the world a worse place
Success
Elon Musk on MacKenzie Scott giving away $26 billion of her fortune: 'Sadly,' it makes the world a worse place
By Sydney LakeJune 29, 2026
3 days ago

© 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.