Miriam Adelson Contributes $95 Million to Trump PAC

Posted on: October 16, 2024, 04:16h. 

Last updated on: October 17, 2024, 10:02h.

Todd Shriber @etfgodfather Read More
Expertise: Financial, Gaming Business, Mergers and Acquisitions.

During the third quarter, Dr. Miriam Adelson donated $95 million to a super political action committee (PAC) focusing on former President Donald Trump’s 2024 bid.

Las Vegas Review-Journal Donald Trump Adelson
Dr. Miriam Adelson embraces Donald Trump at his Trump National Golf Club in Bedminster, NJ, on Aug. 15, 2024. Filings show she donated $95 million to a pro-Trump super PAC in the third quarter. (Image: AP)

A Tuesday filing with the Federal Election Commission (FEC) indicates Adelson, the widow of Las Vegas Sands (NYSE: LVS) chairman and CEO Sheldon Adelson, made four contributions to the Preserve America PAC totaling $95 million in the July through September period.

After bankrolling the Republican Convention in Milwaukee in July, Adelson donated $25 million to Preserve America later that month, according to the FEC document. That July 26 transaction was followed by another in the same amount on August 13. Adelson, 78, donated another $25 million to the PAC on September 9, and $20 million eight days later.

That quartet of transactions brought Adelon’s year-to-date contributions to Preserve America to $100 million. She accounted for the bulk of the third-quarter donations to the PAC, which is aiming to spend close to $115 million on television advertisements to support Trump’s 2024 election effort.

Adelson’s Spending Comes as Trump’s Odds Shorten

On Monday, the Las Vegas Review-Journal endorsed Trump. Nevada’s most circulated newspaper has been owned by the Adelson family since 2015.

That endorsement, coupled with news of Adelson’s massive financial largess to Preserve America, comes against the backdrop of betting markets pricing in shortening odds of the former president reclaiming the White House next month. Current odds on Polymarket, which is one of the most active political betting sites, imply Trump has a 58.7% chance of winning compared to 41% for Democrat nominee Vice President Kamala Harris.

Those are the best odds Trump has seen since July, though it should be noted that Polymarket isn’t available to US bettors. Rival prediction markets also currently favor Trump, though national polling suggests Harris has a modest lead over her opponent.

Shares on Polymarket are priced from $0 to $1, with a share trading at 50 cents implying even odds of the event occurring or not happening. Contracts on Polymarket are purchased via the Polygon cryptocurrency, which is based on the Ethereum blockchain.

Adelson Living Up to Pledge to Back Trump

Adelson, the largest individual shareholder in Sands and the majority owner of the NBA’s Dallas Mavericks, is living up to a promise to support Trump’s quest for a second term in the Oval Office. Earlier this year, she said she’d be a major benefactor of Preserve America and she’s followed through on that pledge.

Her support, however, isn’t surprising. In 2020, she and her late husband donated $90 million to the PAC, and during the 2016 presidential race, the couple were Trump’s biggest donors.

Adelson’s history with Trump is well-documented, with much of her support of the former president stemming from his backing of Israel and a decision to move the US embassy there to Jerusalem. He awarded her the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2018.