Charles Koch on Wednesday said that he will likely refrain from openly backing a candidate in the Republican presidential primary, and will instead wait until the general election to throw his support behind the nominee.
“I have no plans to support anybody in the primary now,” he told USA Today.
Koch said that he does not decide who to support based solely on what they say on the campaign trail.
“If they start saying things we think are beneficial overall and will change the trajectory of the country, then that would be good, but we have to believe also they’ll follow through on it, and by and large, candidates don’t do that,” he told USA Today.
He would not discuss any particular Republican presidential candidate.
“When we do, it’s totally blown out of proportion,” he said.
The Koch brothers are two of the most influential Republican donors, and they have built a large network of conservative advocacy groups in the country. For the 2016 presidential election, Koch projects his network of donors will raise $750 million. The Kochs originally projected they would raise $889 million, and Charles Koch told USA Today that they may still exceed $750 million.
