Abigail Disney, the heiress and granddaughter of one of the co-founders of The Walt Disney Company, announced that she will recommence her donations to the Democratic Party now that President Joe Biden has decided not to seek reelection. Earlier this month, Disney declared that she would halt financial support to the party until a change was made at the top of the ticket.
In an email to CNBC on Monday, Disney confirmed, “Yes, I will resume supporting,” now that Biden has withdrawn from the race and endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris as his successor. When she initially expressed her plans to withhold donations, Disney also voiced her backing for Harris.
She stated, “We have an excellent Vice President. If Democrats would tolerate any of her perceived shortcomings even one-tenth as much as they have tolerated Biden’s (and let’s not kid ourselves about where race and gender figure in that inequity) and if Democrats can find a way to stop quibbling and rally around her, we can win this election by a lot.”
Disney was among a number of prominent Democratic donors who expressed their discontent with Biden after his subpar debate performance against former President Donald Trump. Reports indicate that pressure from major donors and a decrease in funding contributed to Biden’s decision to step aside.
Following Biden’s announcement, noted philanthropist George Soros and his son, Alex Soros, also pledged their support for Harris.