Philanthropist Melinda French Gates has endorsed Democratic incumbent Joe Biden for the first time in a presidential election, citing his support for reproductive rights and other issues.
This year, Gates left $12.5 billion for her own philanthropic efforts from the charitable foundation she co-founded with her former husband, Microsoft founder Bill Gates.
She said the difference between Biden and his Republican rival, former President Donald Trump, in the Nov. 5 election “couldn’t be greater and the stakes couldn’t be higher.”
“Women deserve leaders who care about the issues they face and are committed to protecting their safety, health, economic power, reproductive rights, and ability to participate freely and fully in a functioning democracy.” she wrote on social media platform X. On Thursday.
The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation donated about $1.8 million in the 2020 election, most of it to Democrats.
On CNN Opinion articles Gates elaborated further on Thursday, saying Trump’s first term had put women’s health, safety and freedom at risk.
“And he knowingly appointed Supreme Court justices who would overturn Roe v. Wade, resulting in decisions that would have far-reaching and devastating consequences for women and their families,” her CNN article added.
In 2022, the Supreme Court overturned a 50-year-old decision that guaranteed the right to abortion and allowed a series of state restrictions to be put in place, with three justices appointed by President Trump in a 5-4 majority.
The Trump campaign has not yet commented.
The Winklevoss twins support Trump
Meanwhile, the Winklevoss twins, the billionaire founders of cryptocurrency company Gemini, announced on Thursday that they had each donated $1 million worth of Bitcoin to support Trump, becoming the latest example of crypto company executives backing the Republican presidential candidate.
Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss, whose cryptocurrency company reached a settlement agreement with U.S. and New York state financial regulators in February following accusations of misconduct, announced the donation in a post on X.
He did not say where the donations were sent.
Tyler Winklevoss: Biden’s Democratic administration “Openly declares war on cryptocurrencies” And Trump was “pro-Bitcoin, pro-cryptocurrency and pro-business.”
President Trump has cast himself as a defender of cryptocurrencies, appearing at a fundraiser with tech executives in San Francisco this month where he slammed Democrats’ attempts to regulate the sector.
The cryptocurrency industry has faced increased scrutiny from regulators and is increasingly trying to influence U.S. politicians since the bankruptcies of major crypto companies in 2022 spooked investors, exposing fraud and misconduct and causing losses for millions of investors.
The New York State Department of Financial Services (NYDFS) announced in February that Gemini would return at least $1.1 billion to customers of loan programs that were rendered insolvent by a third-party bankruptcy and pay a $37 million penalty for unsafe and unsound practices as part of a settlement with regulators.
Gemini also settled a lawsuit filed by the Securities and Exchange Commission in February alleging that the company engaged in unsafe and unsound practices for $21 million, without admitting or denying any wrongdoing in the agreement.
The Winklevoss twins rose to fame when they sued Facebook and its CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, claiming that he stole their idea for the social networking site, settling the case in 2008 and receiving cash and Facebook stock.
The Biden administration did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
