FILE - Senatorial candidate Mike Gibbons speaks with supporters during a campaign rally in Maineville, Ohio, Jan. 14, 2022. Millionaire candidates and billionaire investors are harnessing their considerable personal wealth to try to win competitive Republican primaries for open U.S. Senate seats in Pennsylvania and Ohio. Gibbons, an Ohio investment banker, leads the pack of self-funders in both states after loaning his campaign almost $17 million. (AP Photo/Jeff Dean, File)
Mike Gibbons
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Millionaire candidates and billionaire investors are harnessing their considerable personal wealth to try to win competitive Republican primaries for open U.S. Senate seats in Pennsylvania and Ohio. In Ohio, four wealthy candidates led by investment banker Mike Gibbons have given their campaigns over $35 million combined.
In Pennsylvania, three multimillionaire candidates, including TV’s Dr. Mehmet Oz, report lending their campaigns over $20 million combined.
Billionaires Peter Thiel and Ken Griffin have contributed millions to super PACs supporting their candidates.
The executive director of the research group OpenSecrets says self-funding appeals to wealthy candidates because it allows them to “fight fire with fire” against deep-pocketed super PACs and dark-money groups.
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