Reclusive Republican megadonor drops $50m into Trump super PAC

Banking heir Timothy Mellon is the largest donor to Trump-connected PACs

Reclusive billionaire and Republican mega-donor Timothy Mellon gave $50 million to a Donald Trump-supporting super PAC in July after pumping two other massive multi-million dollar donations into his campaign this cycle.

The banking heir has now given a total of $115m to the Trump-connected Make America Great Again Inc. since 2023, making him the biggest donor to the political action committees that are backing the former president’s 2024 campaign.

A filing with the Federal Election Commission on Tuesday shows $50m from Mellon on July 15, shortly before President Joe Biden ended his re-election campaign and endorsed Kamala Harris in the race against Trump.

That donation appears to account for the bulk of donations that MAGA Inc. received in July.

Donald Trump speaks from Michigan on August 20. His super PAC received $50m from a billionaire donor on Tuesday (AFP via Getty Images)

Mellon — an heir to the Pittsburgh family’s banking fortune — gave $50m to the Trump-connected PAC on May 31, one day after a New York jury convicted the former president on 34 felony counts stemming from his attempts to cover up a sex scandal before the 2016 election.

Mellon also gave more than $25m to groups supporting Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

Tuesday’s FEC filing also shows tens of millions of dollars coming into the PAC from investment banker Warren Stephens, Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, and Jacob Helberg, an adviser for the Peter Thiel-founded Palantir Technologies.

Harris’s campaign, meanwhile, has reportedly raised roughly half a billion dollars since she launched her campaign after Biden exited the race on July 21.

The vice president raised roughly $200m in the first week of her campaign as she moved quickly to secure delegate pledges and Democratic endorsements heading into the Democratic National Convention.

Her campaign hauled in another $310m in July.