(Bloomberg) -- Galaxy Digital LP founder Mike Novogratz and filmmaker Andrew Jarecki are two donors behind a $2 million contribution to Democrats who have called for President Joe Biden to step down as the party’s nominee, the latest sign donors are shifting money away from the presidential ticket.
The donation is from a group of several dozen donors, also including Sessa Capital’s John Petry and hedge-fund manager Neil Chriss and his wife Natasha, to a super political action committee for House Democrats. The funds are earmarked to help vulnerable members who were among the first to say Biden should bow out of the race, according to a person familiar with the contribution.
Those lawmakers risked angering the Democratic National Committee, which is aligned with the Biden campaign, and provides significant financial support to candidates in battleground districts.
The money is slated to bolster Representatives Angie Craig of Minnesota, Marie Gluesenkamp Perez of Washington State, Jared Golden of Maine and Pat Ryan of New York.
“When members are bold, we as donors should follow,” Petry said.
Novogratz, Jarecki and the Democratic National Committee did not immediately respond to requests to comment.
The donation is a warning shot to Biden’s team, which has suffered from a drop-off in donations since the president’s debate performance two weeks ago escalated concerns about his age, mental fitness and ability to defeat Donald Trump. Many donors, including Novogratz and actor George Clooney, have called for Biden to cede the Democratic nomination to a younger candidate and have pledged to only give to a successor.
One fundraiser said that major contributors have effectively frozen donations to Biden and are instead looking to give to congressional races, where they think Democrats could still win.
The announcement followed a high-stakes press conference for Biden on Thursday where he mistakenly referred to Vice President Kamala Harris as “Vice President Trump.” The media availability, intended to help Biden make the case he can serve another term, didn’t doom his campaign, but won’t quiet the critics, the donor said.
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--With assistance from Amanda Gordon.
(Updates with John Petry, Neil and Natasha Chriss.)
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