In a surprise donation from billionaire investor George Soros, the 91-year-old Hungarian-American gave $1 million to Beto O’Rourke’s campaign.
Soros’ organization, Open Society Foundations, regularly funds progressive and liberal politicians and causes.
Over the decades, Soros has donated an estimated $11 billion to various causes, including climate change and civil rights. His charitable contributions have made Soros a target of the far-right, who characterize him as an antagonist in the political arena, giving large sums of money to the opposition.
A majority of O’Rourke’s $27.6 million in donations surprisingly came from people out of state. With the help of these outside contributors, O’Rourke has broken records for his fundraising, reaching a record-breaking amount in six months.
Soros has been an outspoken critic of the conservative majority on the Supreme Court. After Roe. v. Wade was overturned, Soros wrote in a tweet criticizing the court’s decision.
“The U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to overturn #RoeVWade ends federal protections for abortion, diminishes human rights, and greatly threatens reproductive care,” Soros said. “We have invested in reproductive rights organizations that are fighting back at this moment.”