Who Is the Art World Backing in the Democratic Primaries? Here’s Who Artists, Dealers, and Collectors Donated Money to Support

Which mega-dealers backed Mayor Pete? Which artists are hopping on the Bernie bandwagon? We break it down here.

Democratic Presidential candidate Joe Biden. Photo by Melina Mara/The Washington Post via Getty Images.

As Americans head to the polls for the Democratic primaries on Super Tuesday, voters in 14 states will be casting their ballots for a rapidly narrowing field of candidates with the last-minute withdrawals of former South Bend, Indiana, mayor Pete Buttigieg and Minnesota senator Amy Klobuchar.

As we await the results later today, we scoured the nonprofit donations-tracking website Open Secrets for early clues about who the country’s artsiest constituents might be vying for—or at least who they’re giving money to.

The results revealed a few trends: Artists tended to give to progressive candidates like Bernie Sanders or Elizabeth Warren, while collectors and blue-chip dealers preferred moderates like Joe Biden and Pete Buttigieg. (Former New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg does not accept individual donations.) In fact, we only spotted one collector who gave to Sanders. (On the Republican side, the only art world donors to President Donald Trump who turned up in our research were Acquavella Galleries and collector Bruce Toll.)

Here’s our non-exhaustive list of who some of the nation’s leading artists, collectors, and dealers donated to during the presidential primaries.

Joe Biden

Presidential candidate Joe Biden speaks to supporters during a rally on March 2, 2020 at Texas Southern University in Houston, Texas. Photo by Mark Felix/AFP/Getty Images.

Presidential candidate Joe Biden speaks to supporters during a rally on March 2, 2020 at Texas Southern University in Houston, Texas. Photo by Mark Felix/AFP/Getty Images.

COLLECTORS

Barbara Bluhm-Kaul $2,800

Beth Rudin DeWoody $2,800

Neil Bluhm $2,800

Eli Broad $2,800

Edythe Broad $2,800

Warren Eisenberg $2,800

Katherine G. Farley $2,800

Jo Carole Lauder $2,800

Marguerite Hoffman $2,800

Jon Landau $1,000

Liz Lefkofsky $2,800

Martin Margulies $2,800

Lisa Perry $2,800

Richard Perry $3,800

Roger Sant $5,600

Jane Toll $2,800

Robert Toll $2,800

Penny Pritzker $8,400

Benjamin De Menil $1,950

ARTISTS

Elizabeth Neel $221

DEALERS

Adam Sheffer $250

Elizabeth Warren

Elizabeth Warren, 2016. Courtesy Alex Wong/Getty Images.

ARTISTS

Nina Chanel Abney $360

Carroll Dunham $500

Dawoud Bey $500

DEALERS

Paula Cooper Gallery $500

Brent Sikkema $257

COLLECTORS

Jon Landau $515

 

Pete Buttigieg

Former South Bend, Indiana Mayor Pete Buttigieg announces he is ending his campaign to be the Democratic nominee for president during a speech at the Century Center on March 01, 2020 in South Bend, Indiana. Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images.

Former South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg announces he is ending his campaign to be the Democratic nominee for president during a speech at the Century Center on March 1, 2020. Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images.

ARTISTS

Peter Anton $250

Robert Gober $500

Maya Lin $250

Mary Heilmann $1,000

Annie Leibovitz $2,800

DEALERS

Larry Gagosian $8,400

David Zwirner $8,400

Barbara Gladstone $7,800

Matthew Marks $2,800

Francis Naumann $2,000

Jessica Silverman $2,800

COLLECTORS

Paul Cejas $2,800

Alexandra Cohen $2,800

Kyle DeWoody $2,800

Glenn Dubin $5,600

Katherine G. Farley $2,800

David Geffen $5,600

Leonard Blavatnik $1,600

Anna Wintour $2,800

Marguerite Hoffman $5,600

Pamela Joyner $2,000

Marsha Perelman $2,800

Jeffrey Perelman $2,800

Lisa Perry $2,800

Richard Perry $2,800

Laurene Powell Jobs $2,800

Lisa Pritzker $1,250

Louise Riggio $2,800

Aby Rosen $2,800

Roger Sant $5,600

 

Bernie Sanders

Democratic presidential candidate Senator Bernie Sanders addresses supporters during a campaign rally in the Central Mall of the Utah State Fair Park March 02, 2020 in Salt Lake City, Utah. Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images.

Democratic presidential candidate Senator Bernie Sanders addresses supporters during a campaign rally in the Central Mall of the Utah State Fair Park, March 2, 2020 in Salt Lake City. Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images.

ARTISTS

Larry Bell $1,250

Molly Crabapple $1,900

Jessica Mitrani $250

Laura Owens $300

Cecily Brown $500

DEALERS

Jim Kempner $1,000

COLLECTORS

Kyle DeWoody $1,000

 

Amy Klobuchar

Amy Klobuchar. Courtesy of Wikipedia.

 

COLLECTORS

Neil Bluhm $5,600

Katherine G. Farley $2,800

Marguerite Hoffman $4,000

Peter Kraus $2,000

Raymond McGuire $1,000

Marsha Perelman $1,500

Roger Sant $5,600

Jon Shirley $2,800

Robert Toll $2,000

Ari Emanuel $2,800

 

Tom Steyer

Tom Steyer. Photo by Gage Skidmore, via Wikipedia.

COLLECTORS

Daniel Och $2,800

Lisa Perry $2,800

Richard Perry $2,800

 

Cory Booker

Cleo Wade and Cory Booker at Refinery29's 29Rooms in the "Just Dance" room. Courtesy of Joe Schildhorn/BFA.

Cleo Wade and Cory Booker at Refinery29’s 29Rooms in the “Just Dance” room. Courtesy of Joe Schildhorn/BFA.

ARTISTS

Richard Serra $2,500

Cleo Wade $1,500

CURATORS

Anne Pasternak $250

DEALERS

Alexander Gray $250

COLLECTORS

Leon Black $1,000

Eli Broad $2,800

Edythe Broad $2,800

Beth Rudin DeWoody $2,800

Leonardo DiCaprio $2,800

Agnes Gund $2,800

Jimmy Iovine $2,000

Leonard Lauder $2,700

Raymond McGuire $2,800

Laurene Powell Jobs $2,800

Lisa Pritzker $1,000

Aby Rosen $2,800

Roger Sant $2,800

 

Kamala Harris

US Senator Kamala Harris. Photo by Saul Loeb/AFP/Getty Images.

ARTISTS

Wade Guyton $2,800

Robert Longo $1,000

Julie Mehretu $1,000

Cleo Wade $2,800

Catherine Opie $250

CURATORS

Thelma Golden $250

DEALERS

Barbara Gladstone $1,000

COLLECTORS

Eli Broad $2,800

Edythe Broad $2,800

Leonardo DiCaprio $5,600

Pamela Joyner $5,400

Liz Lefkofsky $2,800

Nathalie Marciano $2,700

Donald B. Marron $2,800

Crystal McCrary $2,800

Raymond McGuire $2,800

Lisa Perry $2,800

Richard Perry $2,800

Lisa Pritzker $6,400

Mera Rubell $500

Laurene Powell Jobs $2,700

 

Beto O’Rourke

Democratic presidential candidate and former Rep. Beto O'Rourke speaks to his supporters after announcing he was dropping out of the presidential race before the start of the Iowa Democratic Party Liberty. Photo by Joshua Lott/Getty Images.

Democratic presidential candidate and former Rep. Beto O’Rourke speaks to his supporters after announcing he was dropping out of the presidential race before the start of the Iowa Democratic Party Liberty. Photo by Joshua Lott/Getty Images.

ARTISTS

Zackary Drucker $500

COLLECTORS

John Arnold $2,700

Carlton DeWoody $2,700

Marguerite Hoffman $5,600

Liz Lefkofsky $2,800

Raymond McGuire $1,500

 

Kirsten Gillibrand

Senator Kristen Gillibrand speaks to Brooklyn Museum Director Anne Pasternak at the Brooklyn Conference on Thursday, October 19, 2017. Image courtesy of Brooklyn Museum.

COLLECTORS

Neil Bluhm $5,600

Marguerite Hoffman $4,700

Chara Schreyer $1,000

 

Julián Castro

COLLECTORS

Suzanne Deal Booth $1,000

Laurene Powell Jobs $2,800

 

Bill De Blasio

Bill de Blasio at the Pioneer Works Village Fete. Photo courtesy of BFA.

Bill de Blasio at the Pioneer Works Village Fete. Photo courtesy of BFA.

COLLECTORS

Aby Rosen $2,800

 

Jay Inslee

Washington Gov. Jay Inslee announces his run for the 2020 Presidency. Photo by Karen Ducey/Getty Images.

ARTISTS

Alex Israel $250

COLLECTORS

Beth Rudin DeWoody $2,500

Kim Richter Shirley $2,800

 

John Hickenlooper

John Hickenlooper.

ARTISTS

Paula Crown $2,800

COLLECTORS

Neil Bluhm $2,800

Eli Broad $5,600

Daniel Brodsky $2,000

Glenn Dubin $2,800

Larry Marx $8,400

Susan Marx $2,800

Marsha Perelman $1,000

Roger Sant $5,600

Jon Shirley $5,600

Kim Richter Shirley $5,600

Penny Pritzker $5,600

 

Steve Bullock

Steve Bullock.

ARTISTS

Ross Bleckner $500

COLLECTORS

Glenn Dubin $1,005

Roger Sant $1,000

 

Michael Bennet

COLLECTORS

John Arnold $2,800

Laura Arnold $2,800

Eli Broad $2,800

Edythe Broad $2,800

Glenn Dubin $2,800

Jill Kraus $500

Lisa Pritzker $1,000

Roger Sant $500

 

Marianne Williamson

COLLECTORS

Kyle DeWoody $5,750

Andrew Yang

Andrew Wang. Photo: Gage Skidmore, via Wikipedia.

COLLECTORS

Laurene Powell Jobs $2,800