Internal Division within Koch Network on Haley Endorsement Sparks Controversy

The Americans for Prosperity’s super PAC endorsement of Nikki Haley for president is causing rift in the group and other organizations affiliated with the Koch Network, as reported by NBC News.

Chris Maidment, a former director of grassroots for the network in New Hampshire, was vocal with concerns about the Haley endorsement and was terminated from the position after publicly opposing it in a thread on X.

Former AFP director Mark Lucas endorsed former President Donald Trump at a Saturday event in Cedar Rapids and criticized the network.

AFP CEO Emily Seidel defended the PAC’s endorsement of Haley, despite criticisms of her interventionist foreign policy record and recent examples of employees breaking rank, as reported by NBC.

The Koch network, a long-time power player in politics, has raised tens of millions every election cycle for decades to fund business-friendly Republicans, as reported by The New York Times.

Some fear that the Koch network’s hesitancy to support Trump threatens to chip away at their influence if he takes back the Oval Office in 2024.

Their move to endorse Haley over Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis comes as the former South Carolina governor appears to be gaining ground on him in 2024 GOP primary polls, especially in early states.

While Trump leads by a significant 27-percentage-point margin in Iowa, FiveThirtyEight estimates that DeSantis and Haley are battling it out for second place, at 17.7% and 15%, respectively.