Citadel's billionaire CEO Ken Griffin becomes GOP $100 million midterm megadonor

Citadel's billionaire CEO, Ken Griffin, is 1 of Wall Street's biggest governmental donors successful the 2022 midterms, giving much than $100 cardinal toward authorities and national candidates crossed the state since April 2021, run concern records show.

The $50 cardinal Griffin has donated to Republicans moving successful national races unsocial marque him the party's azygous biggest idiosyncratic donor from the concern manufacture and the third-biggest governmental donor to national candidates successful this predetermination cycle, according to information tracked by run concern watchdog OpenSecrets.

Only Soros Fund Management laminitis George Soros and shipping magnate Richard Uihlein person fixed much to candidates moving for the U.S. House oregon Senate. Soros has donated implicit $128 cardinal to Democrats portion Uihlein has fixed $53 cardinal to Republicans, according to OpenSecrets.

Griffin, however, has spent different $50 cardinal during this predetermination rhythm — which runs from Jan. 1, 2021 done the extremity of this twelvemonth — connected the failed Illinois gubernatorial run of Aurora, Ill., Mayor Richard Irvin, who mislaid successful the Republican primary, according to authorities run concern records.

Citadel announced plans this summer to determination its office from Chicago to Miami, arsenic the Windy City struggles to halt a emergence successful crime. Griffin has antecedently said portion of his feud with Illinois Gov. J. B. Pritzker is implicit the Democratic leader's grounds connected crime. Griffin said astatine a DealBook league past twelvemonth that erstwhile helium brought up the transgression contented to Pritzker, "he took the infinitesimal to call me a liar."

Zia Ahmed, a spokesperson for Griffin, told CNBC successful a connection that the Citadel CEO is aiming to "broaden the structure of the Republican Party."

"Ken wants to elevate talented candidates and broaden the structure of the Republican Party to marque it much typical of our country," Ahmed said. "He supports leaders who volition absorption connected education, occupation creation, nationalist information and a beardown nationalist defence truthful that each idiosyncratic has entree to the American dream."

Democratic governmental operatives person taken purpose astatine Griffin, particularly arsenic he's tried to marque an interaction connected elections.

The Democratic Governors Association, an extracurricular radical that backs Democrats, organized absorption probe connected Griffin arsenic helium was deciding who to enactment successful the Illinois Republican superior for governor. The research, which was reviewed by CNBC, is titled "Ken Griffin Has Been Playing Kingmaker In IL Politics With No Consequences." It's a compilation of nationalist documents and reporting that included a absorption connected Griffin's divorces. Pritzker, who has an estimated nett worthy of $3.6 billion, donated $24 cardinal to the radical arsenic Griffin moved to backmost Irvin, according to records filed to the IRS.

In a connection to CNBC, the Democratic governors' radical compared Griffin's contributions to those of Charles Koch and his brother, the precocious David Koch. They said that Griffin deserves scrutiny owed to him becoming a large donor for Republicans.

"Much similar erstwhile the Koch Brothers were the Republican Party's fig 1 donor it was important for the nationalist to recognize however they were trying to usage their wealth to further their ain peculiar interests," a Democratic Governors Association spokesperson said aft being asked astir the absorption research. "Ken Griffin is present the largest donor successful the GOP and deserves the aforesaid benignant of scrutiny."

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., and different GOP leaders person privately courted Griffin arsenic 1 of their astir important and lucrative donors this cycle, arsenic Republicans effort to instrumentality backmost some the U.S. House and Senate, according to radical acquainted with the conversations.

Democrats power the House and Senate, but by slim margins. The Senate is divided 50-50 with Democrats relying connected Vice President Kamala Harris to interruption immoderate ties. Cook Political Report labels Senate seats held by Sens. Raphael Warnock, D-Ga., Catherine Cortez Masto, D-Nev., and Ron Johnson, R-Wis., arsenic toss-ups. In the House, Democrats person a nine-seat majority. But the Cook study projects that 30 of the chamber's 435 seats are up for grabs.

Data from AdImpact shows the wide predetermination combat for power of the Senate has outgo implicit $1 cardinal with astir 30 days near to spell until Election Day. In total, national candidates and PACs person spent successful excess of $6.4 billion connected the 2022 midterms, putting them connected way to beryllium the astir costly ever.

Republican leaders are turning to Griffin to instrumentality the pb aft 2 of the GOP party's astir influential donors person died: erstwhile enforcement vice president of Koch Industries David Koch astatine 79 successful August 2019 and casino magnate Sheldon Adelson astatine 87 successful January 2021.

"He likes being a player" successful politics, a Koch governmental advisor told CNBC erstwhile asked astir Griffin's efforts to sway the midterms. Griffin said successful a 2012 interrogation with the Chicago Tribune that helium knew David Koch and his member Charles for "a fig of years" and regularly went to the Koch web seminars, wherever concern leaders would huddle with the group's donors.

The Koch's argumentation web has spent hundreds of millions of dollars implicit the past decennary connected campaigns.

Griffin, 53, has "youth connected his broadside and astir apt $35 billion," the Koch advisor said. "He could measurement up but those are large shoes to fill." Forbes estimates Griffin has a nett worthy of $30.5 billion.

Among Wall Street executives, the adjacent biggest GOP donors see Blackstone CEO Steve Schwarzman with $20 cardinal successful contributions and Paul Singer, the laminitis of Elliott Management, who's donated $14 cardinal during this predetermination cycle. Jeffrey Yass, the co-founder of Philadelphia based trading steadfast Susquehanna International Group, has contributed implicit $30 million.

McConnell and enactment officials this summertime were expecting Griffin to chopped a multimillion-dollar cheque to the Senate Leadership Fund, according to those acquainted with McConnell's thinking. Though McConnell doesn't tally the ace PAC, which is dedicated to helping Republicans get elected to the Senate, it's intimately aligned with the legislator and tally by his erstwhile main of staff, Steven Law.

Griffin donated $10 cardinal to the PAC successful 2 evenly divided checks sent successful December and March, Federal Election Commission filings show. Griffin chopped different cheque to the PAC successful the 3rd quarter, according to a idiosyncratic adjacent to the billionaire, but they wouldn't accidental however overmuch and the PAC doesn't request to disclose its astir caller fundraising records to the FEC until Oct. 15.

Griffin besides precocious donated to the Congressional Leadership Fund, a ace PAC backing House Republican candidates, that idiosyncratic said, declining to accidental however much. FEC records amusement Griffin donated implicit $18 cardinal to that radical from Jan. 1, 2021 done June.

A typical for McConnell did not instrumentality a petition for comment.

Griffin gave $5 cardinal past twelvemonth to a abstracted governmental enactment committee backing Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis' 2022 reelection bid and an further $5 cardinal to the Republican Party of Florida successful August, according to authorities run concern records.

During CNBC's Delivering Alpha Conference, Griffin indicated that he's go truthful adjacent to DeSantis that his squad told the politician that Griffin didn't hold with DeSantis' determination to fly 2 planes of Central and South American migrants to Martha's Vineyard.

"I don't hold with what helium did," Griffin said erstwhile asked astatine the league astir DeSantis shipping migrants to Florida. "I'm definite that my team's communicated that to him," helium added. He besides said helium was unfastened to becoming Treasury caput if the state was experiencing an economical crisis. DeSantis hasn't ruled retired moving for president successful the upcoming 2024 election.