David Trone is jumping into the race for the Democratic nomination for the Eighth Congressional District. He calls himself a “strong Democrat” but will have to explain quickly his major heavy donations to Republican candidates.
Trone Donated Far More to Republicans Than Democrats in State Elections
Trone has donated far more to Republicans than Democrats in state contests. According to followthemoney.org, he gave $161,016 to Republican candidates since 2000 (see below). That compares to just $94,113, or 29%, to Democrats and $37,850 to unidentified candidates. Interestingly, all $26,500 of his donations in Maryland were to Democrats.
Trone has donated to right-wing conservatives, including:
- $8,941 to Texas Gov. Greg Abbott.
- $15,000 to Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick.
- $2,500 to Thom Tillis, North Carolina U.S. Senator and former Speaker of the North Carolina House.
- $8,000 to North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory.
- $4,500 to Henry McMaster, South Carolina Lt. Governor and former Attorney General and State Senator.
More Democratic in Federal and Other Donations
The Center for Responsive Politics reports that the direction of Trone’s federal donations has been quite different–lopsidedly in favor of Democrats. Since 1990, Trone has given $55,050 to Democratic candidates, including the maximum legal donation of $2,700 to Martin O’Malley’s presidential campaign. He also donated $1,000 to Republican William Gormley’s in support of his unsuccessful 2000 U.S. Senate bid in New Jersey.
Trone’s has also made thousands of dollars in donations to state parties, legislative caucuses, and PACs. Like his federal donations, these have listed more in the Democratic direction, though he donated $2,975 to the Senate Republican Caucuses in South Carolina and Virginia.
Bottom Line
David Trone has given a lot of money to a variety of staunch conservatives. While self-funding his own campaign, he has also funded many Republican campaigns. Kathleen Matthews can argue her $2,600 donation to conservative Republican Sen. Roy Blunt was a one off. But this record shows a pattern of giving large sums to Republicans over many years.
Trone Has Donated to These Republicans
