Republican megadonor Thomas Peterffy said he is suspending donations to Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) ahead of his potential 2024 presidential campaign.
“I have put myself on hold,” the billionaire founder of Interactive Brokers Group Inc. told the Financial Times in an article published Saturday.
“Because of his stance on abortion and book banning . . . myself, and a bunch of friends, are holding our powder dry,” Peterffy explained.
On Thursday night, DeSantis signed Florida Republicans’ restrictive six-week abortion ban into law. He has also banned Black history courses and books, moves that were apparently too extreme for Peterffy.
DeSantis, a possible challenger to former President Donald Trump for the Republican nomination, “seems to have lost some momentum,” Peterffy added.
In November 2022, Peterffy was one of five Republican heavies to distance themselves from Trump following the GOP’s poor showing in that month’s midterm elections, which was largely attributed to Trump’s endorsement of candidates who regurgitated his 2020 election lies.
“I think we need a fresh face,” Peterffy told Bloomberg at the time. “The problem with Trump is he has so many negatives, he can’t get elected, period.”
Peterffy said he would vote for Trump if he became the GOP nominee, though.