Managers putting money on Obama

Money managers — most of them alternatives managers — are betting that Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., will be the next president of the United States. Or at least they are hedging their bets in case he prevails.

As the campaign heads toward the April 22 Pennsylvania primary, Mr. Obama enjoyed a comfortable lead in money manager largess during February, racking up donations of $170,370 from managers following the Feb. 5 Super Tuesday election contests, almost twice the $85,850 that Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., received from managers over the same time period, according to data compiled from Federal Election Commission reports by the Center for Responsive Politics, a Washington election research group.

Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., the presumptive Republican nominee for the nation's top office, raised $111,775 from money managers during the same period, giving him a generous fundraising lead over Ms. Clinton for the month.

The February totals reflect a re-shuffling of the potential political fortunes of Mr. Obama and Mr. McCain, at least in the eyes of money managers.

“Contributors are more likely to put their money on you when you're winning, and February was an especially good month for Obama and McCain,” said Massie Ritsch, a spokesman for the Center for Responsive Politics.

Nonetheless, the overall rankings of the three leading candidates in terms of total donations they have received from money managers remains the same, with Mr. Obama and Ms. Clinton running well ahead of Mr. McCain.

As of Feb. 29, Mr. Obama's contributions from money managers totaled $2,196,734; Ms. Clinton's, $2,046,550; Sen. McCain, $772,375.

Following Sen. Obama's Super Tuesday victories, employees and executives of some money managers focused new contributions exclusively on Mr. Obama. Among them: hedge fund Highbridge Capital Management LLC, New York, $6,100 in new contributions; hedge fund Angelo Gordon & Co., New York, $6,600; and hedge fund Maverick Capital Ltd., Dallas, $7,100.

For some, the focus on Mr. Obama represented a shift in direction — and sometimes forced by circumstance.

Lee Ainslie, Maverick managing partner, for instance, donated $2,300 to Mr. Obama in February. Earlier in the campaign season, he contributed $4,600 to former Democratic contender Christopher Dodd, the Connecticut senator, and $2,300 to former Republican candidate Mitt Romney.

Mr. Ainslie had no comment, said Amy Castillo, a Maverick spokeswoman.

John M. Angelo, chief executive of the hedge fund that bears his name, contributed $2,300 to Mr. Obama's campaign in February, after contributing the same amount to each of the campaigns of Mr. McCain and Mr. Romney last year.

Mr. Angelo had not returned telephone calls at deadline.

Byron Wien, chief investment officer of Pequot Capital Management Inc., Westport, Conn., contributed $1,300 to Mr. Obama in February. He already had donated $1,000 to Mr. Obama earlier in the campaign. But he also previously contributed $2,300 to the campaign of Ms. Clinton and $1,000 to the campaign of former Republican presidential hopeful Rudy Giuliani. Mr. Wien had no comment, according to Jonathan Gasthalter, a Pequot spokesman.

Stanley Druckenmiller, chairman and CEO of hedge fund Duquesne Capital Management LLC, New York, donated $4,600 to Mr. McCain's campaign in February, after contributing $2,300 to the campaign of Mr. Romney earlier in the race.

Mr. Druckenmiller had not returned telephone calls at deadline.

Hedge fund managers weren't the only ones hedging their bets. Private equity firms were changing horses, too.

David Bonderman, managing partner of private equity firm TPG Capital LP, Fort Worth, Texas, (formerly Texas Pacific Group), kicked in $2,000 for the campaign of Mr. McCain in February, adding to the $2,300 he contributed to the Arizona senator's political war chest last year.

Earlier in the race, Mr. Bonderman also donated $2,000 to the campaign of Mr. Dodd.

Together, TPG representatives have donated $57,100 to the campaigns of all the candidates, with $8,900 going to Mr. Dodd's campaign, $17,800 to Ms. Clinton's and $14,650 to Mr. Obama's, according to the campaign contribution reports.

Mr. Bonderman had no comment, according to Owen Blicksilver, a TPG spokesman.

Mr. McCain got $12,025 in donations in February from executives and employees of hedge fund Corriente Advisors LLC, Fort Worth, Texas.

The contributions included $4,600 from James Haddaway, Corriente's chief financial officer and chief operating officer; $4,600 from Corriente Chairman Mark Hart III, and $2,300 from Holman Harvey, the company's president, according to center's data. Other Corriente employees chipped in $525.

Before Super Tuesday, much of Corriente officials' largess had gone to Mr. Giuliani: His campaign received $16,350 of the $25,525 that Corriente executives and employees had given to the candidates throughout the campaign.

Mr. Haddaway had not returned telephone calls by deadline.

Another manager whose senior executives took a significant position in the post-Super Tuesday giving was hedge fund QVT Financial LP, New York. QVT officials divvied up $11,500 between Ms. Clinton and Mr. McCain, with managing member Lars Bader donating $2,300 to Ms. Clinton's campaign and managing member Tracy Fu donating $2,300 to Ms. Clinton and $4,600 to Mr. McCain. Peter Bonney, also identified by FEC records as being associated with QVT, contributed an additional $2,300 to Ms. Clinton.

Mr. Fu declined comment. But before Super Tuesday, Nicholas Brumm, QVT's managing director, donated $4,600 to Ms. Clinton's campaign, and Mr. Fu donated $2,300 to Mitt Romney. In addition, Shane Wilson, identified as a representative of QVT, donated $1,500 to the campaign of Mr. Obama on Feb. 5, according to the data.

Also making a significant financial splash in the campaigns in February were executives of private equity firm Warburg Pincus LLC, New York, who doled out $10,950 to the two Democratic presidential contenders. Cary J. Davis, Warburg Pincus managing director, gave Ms. Clinton's campaign $4,600 during February. Another $2,300 was donated that month to Ms. Clinton by other company representatives, with the remaining $4,050 going to Mr. Obama's campaign.

Katja Gehrt, Warburg Pincus VP marketing, said company officials had no comment.

Including the post-Super Tuesday donations, Warburg Pincus executives and employees had given all the presidential candidates a total of $55,800 in the campaigns through the end of February, including a single $2,300 contribution to Mr. McCain.

Executives of hedge fund Fortress Investment Group LLC, New York, which have been major contributors throughout the campaign, hedged their bets in February, giving $5,350 to Mr. Obama, $1,500 to Ms. Clinton, and $1,300 to Mr. McCain.

Throughout the campaigns, Fortress officials have donated $166,400 to all the presidential candidates, with $24,150 going to Ms. Clinton; $15,050 going to Mr. Obama, and $9,400 to Mr. McCain.

Executives at hedge fund SAC Capital Management Inc., New York, which have previously been a major source of money manger funding in the election cycle, kicked in a total of $4,300 following February's Super Tuesday, all to Mr. McCain.

SAC Capital officials have contributed $295,050 to the candidates throughout the election cycle, with $274,100 having gone to Mr. Dodd's campaign. Mr. Dodd is chairman of the Senate Banking Committee, which oversees issues important to hedge funds. By comparison, SAC Capital representatives had given $6,100 to Mr. McCain, $4,600 to Ms. Clinton and $250 to Mr. Obama through the end of February, according to the center's data.

Contact Doug Halonen at [email protected]