‘Trump Alternative’ Nikki Haley Raises Over $500K at Fundraiser With Veteran Wall Street Executives

Republican candidate Nikki Haley earned more than $500,000 during a sizable fundraising dinner that was attended by prominent Wall Street bankers.

Haley's campaign is both financially sustainable and powerful, as seen by the massive amount of money she has raised. If the campaign of the former US ambassador to the UN continues at this pace, she may be in a strong position to challenge former President Donald Trump in the Iowa caucuses, as well as the New Hampshire and South Carolina primaries, per CNBC.

Haley is still about 50 points behind Trump, with Florida Governor Ron DeSantis also in the running. In early Republican primary states like Iowa and New Hampshire, Trump also has sizable leads. Nevertheless, Haley has been rising in several polls due to her impressive debate performances. Polls show her tied with DeSantis in Iowa and ahead of him in New Hampshire, per Reuters.

This week's event took place at the lavish Upper West Side penthouse of Campbell Brown, a former Facebook executive, and Dan Senor, the chief public affairs officer of Elliot Investment Management, a hedge fund. Several co-hosts included on the invitation also have links to Elliot Management founder and longtime Republican contributor Paul Singer, including Annie Dickerson, a "close confidante" of Singer's for years, according to Politico. There was also Elliot Investment Management's head of trading, Steve Cohen, a partner.

One individual said that Singer was not present. However, many other powerful figures on Wall Street did attend. Ray Chambers, a philanthropist who had owned stock in the NHL's New Jersey Devils, Cliff Asness, co-founder of the investment company AQR Capital Management, Kristin Lemkau, CEO of JPMorgan Chase's wealth management business, and Robert Rosenkranz, head of Delphi Capital Management, were all sighted at the fundraiser. 

Lemkau attended the Haley event just a few days after her superior, Jamie Dimon, the CEO of JPMorgan, advised business leaders gathered in a room at the New York Times DealBook conference to back Haley. According to one of the sources, Asness and Brown spoke to the donors, with the former Facebook CEO facilitating a Q&A session with Haley.

Co-host and attorney Eric Levine told CNBC that the event was a  “huge success.” He went on, “It was very enthusiastic,” saying “Nobody is showing up and giving money because they’re not convinced” that Haley is the best choice to head the Republican Party.

Levine stated that among other things, Haley spoke to the group of donors on the need to combat antisemitism and support Israel in its conflict with Hamas. One attendee who attended the 125-person event said that it is thought to have been Haley's most successful fund-raiser since the beginning of her presidential campaign in February. The invitation requested donations to Team Stand for America, a joint fundraising committee supporting her candidacy, ranging from $3,300 to $16,600 per individual.