DeSantis Donor Quakes & New Hampshire Foibles

Ron DeSantis already has about $200 million in the bank, but it’s been a rough month or so.
Ron DeSantis already has about $200 million in the bank, but it’s been a rough month or so. Photo: Chris duMond/Getty Images
Tara Palmeri
April 6, 2023

Among the 15-20 Republican mega-donors who control the purse strings in G.O.P. politics, there’s growing concern that Ron DeSantis, the great white knight from Tallahassee, might not be the one, or at least not yet. Most of these top dogs—Steve Schwarzman, Ken Griffin, Paul Singer, Ken Langone, etcetera—are moderate-ish Bush-era billionaires who loved Trump’s corporate tax cuts but have appeared ready to move on from the candidate, despite the former president’s efforts to win them back by circulating memos highlighting his poll numbers or working the room at John Paulson’s Palm Beach housewarming party.