A major donor to recent Republican candidates has decided to sit 2024 out. Megadonor Peter Thiel is concerned that Republicans are talking about social issues like abortion bans and transgenders in bathrooms instead of issues like the economy, innovation, and China. There is too much focus on the culture war and not enough on other issues. He doesn’t think that Republicans are clearly communicating what they are in favor of.

Libertarian Peter Thiel, a billionaire Republican donor, doesn’t plan to back any candidate in the 2024 GOP primary or general election. He was an early backer of Trump but later broke from him over some of Trump’s divisiveness. He doesn’t like the chaos that surrounds Donald Trump. He made the decision at the end of 2022, according to friends. He wants the Republican Party to focus less on hot-button issues that may turn voters away. Thiel, a co-founder of PayPal and Palantir and an early investor in Facebook, thinks the focus is a mistake that pushes away voters. He is especially interested in focusing on U.S. innovation and economic issues. His fortune is estimated to be about $4.2 billion.

According to OpenSecrets, Thiel has contributed $50 million to state and federal candidates and campaigns since 2000. He was the 10th largest individual donor to either party in the 2022 midterm elections.

Thiel was most likely to support Trump again or sit out the primary. It may be that he is taking a break from politics altogether.

He has been speaking out about a focus on cultural conservatism for years. Thiel was given a speaking spot at the 2016 Republican National Convention and did so then.

‘I am proud to be gay,’ Thiel said on stage. ‘But most of all I am proud to be an American. I don’t pretend to agree with every plank in our party’s platform, but fake culture wars only distract us from our economic decline, and nobody in this race is being honest about it except Donald Trump.’

This frustration with a focus on culture war issues tracks with his Libertarian leanings. He is a unicorn in Silicon Valley among his progressive peers who contribute heavily to Democrats. He is not alone among some top donors who are re-thinking supporting Republican candidates. For example, some are now hesitating to support Governor Ron DeSantis who is expected to enter the race soon. He recently signed a fetal heartbeat bill in Florida that restricts abortion after six weeks. So far none of the big donors leaning toward supporting DeSantis have said they will sit out the entire 2024 election cycle, though.

In 2016, Thiel donated $1.25 million to Trump’s campaign. He is the frontrunner in polls for the nomination now but that could change. Thiel did not contribute to Trump’s campaign in 2020 when he ran for reelection, and that’s important to note. He was a supporter of Trump’s policies but not of the chaos surrounding him. Thiel is certainly not alone in that. It is the primary reason why some voters who supported Trump in 2016 and 2020 now do not want to see him run again. There is no disputing that Trump was a true conservative in most policy issues in office but since 2020 he has concentrated on his loss and refuses to move on from it. Voters are ready to support a candidate with ideas for the future and how to get out of the crises that the Biden presidency has brought.

It would be a shame to lose a generous donor to Republican candidates, especially with Thiel’s recent focus on lower-level candidates. In 2022, he contributed more than $35 million to federal-level candidates, in particular, J.D. Vance and Blake Masters, who ran for the U.S. Senate. Vance won but Masters did not. Masters received $20 million from Thiel. Masters is frequently referred to as a protege of Thiel. Masters co-wrote a book with Thiel in 2014 and he was CEO of Thiel Capital. He was also president of the Thiel Foundation.

Thiel and his spouse are raising two toddlers and safety concerns for his family also weigh on him.

It’s possible that Thiel may change his mind and support candidates in 2024. Let’s hope that comes true because his recent focus on down-ballot candidates is really important. Building solid Republican leadership at state and local levels is how the party grows and cultivates power to set the agenda in state politics, in particular. Governorships are important. As of February 2023, there are 26 Republicans and 24 Democrats. Republican ideas win when candidates communicate in ways that bring people in, not shut them out. Republican candidates have to offer policies and solutions, not just criticize Democrats on culture war issues.