Heiress Abigail Disney announced that she is set to resume her donations to the Democratic Party following President Joe Biden’s decision to withdraw from the 2024 presidential race.
Earlier this month, Disney, whose grandfather was a co-founder of The Walt Disney Company, declared that she would halt her financial support for the party unless Biden stepped down as the nominee. In an email to CNBC on Monday, she confirmed her intention to resume support now that Biden has exited the race and endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris as his successor.
When she made her initial announcement about withholding donations, Disney also expressed her backing for Harris. “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,” she stated.
Disney’s discontent with Biden was shared by several other prominent Democratic donors, particularly after his subpar debate performance against former President Donald Trump. Reports suggest that dissatisfaction among the donor base contributed to Biden’s decision to withdraw from the race.
Notably, financier George Soros and his son, Alex Soros, also voiced their support for Harris after Biden’s announcement.