Billionaire Dick Uihlein Poured Nearly $49 Million Into Pro-Trump PAC, Filings Show
by Siladitya Ray · ForbesTopline
Billionaire and Republican megadonor Dick Uihlein poured nearly $49 million into the conservative Restoration PAC last quarter—which in turn made contributions to several pro-Donald Trump groups—making him one of the biggest backers of the former president’s campaign in the previous three months alongside billionaires Miriam Adelson and Elon Musk.
Key Facts
According to filings made with the Federal Election Commission Tuesday, the Midwestern shipping and packing supplies magnate made contributions totaling $48.8 million to Restoration PAC last quarter (July-September).
Uihlein has made total donations of nearly $59 million to the Restoration PAC since the start of this year.
Filings show Restoration PAC made contributions totaling nearly $20 million to various conservative and pro-Trump groups in the third quarter, including Moms for Liberty Action, the anti-abortion Women Speak Out PAC and Turn Out For America, which supports Trump’s get-out-the-vote efforts.
The billionaire and his wife Liz Uihlein promised to back Trump’s campaign earlier this year after previously backing Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ bid for the presidency.
Forbes Valuation
According to our estimates, Dick and Liz Uihlein’s fortunes are worth $6 billion each. This ranks both of them at number 547 on Forbes’ real-time list of the world’s richest people.
Big Number
218.7 million. That is the combined total contributions made by Trump-backers Uihlein, Musk and Adelson in the last quarter.
Tangent
FEC filings for the third quarter showed billionaire Miriam Adelson donated $95 million to the pro-Trump Preserve America PAC—which has allocated around $113 million toward presidential campaign ads. Adelson is the widow of casino tycoon and former Las Vegas Sands CEO Sheldon Adelson—who was Trump’s biggest donor in 2016. The filings also show billionaire Elon Musk contributed around $75 million to his pro-Trump America PAC. The filings offered the first details into the amount of money Musk is spending to back Trump after earlier reports suggested he may spend as much as $45 million per month.
Key Background
The Uihleins were among the biggest donors backing DeSantis’ bid to challenge Trump in 2023. The Florida governor, however, dropped out of the Republican primary in January and endorsed the former president. In an interview with the Financial Times in March—after Trump routed primary rival Nikki Haley on Super Tuesday—Liz Uihlein said she and her husband would back Trump. At the time, the shipping tycoon said they had each given $1.5 million to the DeSantis campaign and planned to contribute a similar amount to support Trump. The duo founded their shipping supplies company Uline from their basement in 1980—which now does more than $6 billion per year in sales. They have been longtime donors to Republican candidates and, in 2021, the company’s annual catalog hailed Trump’s “America First” trade policies.
Section Title
Elon Musk Has Given $75 Million To Pro-Trump Super PAC—So Far (Forbes)
Billionaire GOP Megadonor Miriam Adelson Gives $95 Million To Pro-Trump Super PAC (Forbes)