Soros’ Last Stand? Trump’s Comeback Puts Billionaire’s Agenda at Risk

Billionaire investor and liberal philanthropist George Soros may face challenges to his financial interests and political projects if Donald Trump returns to the Oval Office, with past efforts—including millions in campaign funding, media efforts, and involvement in legal cases against Trump—failing to prevent his resurgence.

On Friday, Bloomberg reported that Soros Fund Management plans to close its Hong Kong office as part of an "administrative reorganization" after 14 years, possibly indicating a strategic shift in Soros’ global influence as Trump appears poised for a comeback.

Despite substantial financial backing from Soros and his son Alex to keep a Democrat in the White House, including a $60 million transfer from the Soros’ Fund for Policy Reform to Future Forward, a pro-Democrat super PAC, and an additional $15 million donation via an Open Society Foundations (OSF) affiliate, their efforts have so far yielded limited success.

In addition to financial investments, the Soros family has dedicated significant personal effort toward opposing "MAGA Republicans" in the 2024 campaign. In 2023, Alex Soros announced a scale-down of OSF’s activities in Western Europe to focus on Ukraine, Moldova, the Western Balkans, and the United States, prioritizing efforts to prevent Trump’s re-election.

George Soros first raised concerns about Trump’s "America First" policies in 2016, supporting Hillary Clinton’s campaign and later funding anti-Trump activism that included street protests, legal challenges, lobbying, and the promotion of a neoliberal foreign policy. Soros also contributed $1 million toward the now-debunked 'Trump-Russia collusion' dossier.

During Trump’s presidency, Soros advocated for tighter social media regulation, backed liberal prosecutors and judges, and supported numerous state and local candidates aligned with his values. Soros’ shift from global advocacy to increased focus on US politics drew criticism from Trump supporters, with some even calling for him to be labeled a “domestic terrorist.”

After Joe Biden’s 2020 victory, a Soros-affiliated think tank lobbied his administration on policy initiatives aligned with OSF’s priorities, while Soros directed $20 million to support grassroots campaigns promoting Biden’s infrastructure bill. In 2022, he allocated $125 million to a ‘Democracy PAC’ to back anti-MAGA candidates in the midterms.

In 2023, when criminal charges were filed against Trump, the former president attributed the investigations to Soros and Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg, a Soros-funded candidate who received at least $1 million in contributions from the billionaire.

In an August 2023 interview, Soros expressed his expectation that Trump would be found guilty and potentially jailed before the 2024 election. However, with markets now increasingly betting on Trump’s success, as warned by Soros’ former money manager Stan Druckenmiller, Soros' influence may be at a crossroads.

With recent electoral outcomes setting back Soros’ objectives, the future of OSF’s efforts to oppose Trump remains uncertain. It remains to be seen whether the organization will revive its “resistance” initiatives or if Trump’s team—having withstood years of Soros-backed opposition—will respond to further efforts to influence the US political landscape.