Michael Bloomberg 2020 presidential campaign
| Company type | Presidential campaign |
|---|---|
| Industry | Politics |
| Founded | November 2019 |
| Founder | Michael Bloomberg |
| Headquarters | United States |
Area served | United States (Democratic primaries) |
Key people | Michael Bloomberg (candidate) |
| Products | Political campaign |
Number of employees | 2000 (campaign staff) |
The 2020 presidential bid of Michael Bloomberg commenced in November 2019, notably later than the majority of Democratic hopefuls. Bloomberg chose to forgo the early primary states such as Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada, and South Carolina, directing his efforts primarily toward the Super Tuesday contests. He funded his campaign entirely from his own wealth, investing more than $1 billion and declining external financial contributions. The campaign strategy relied heavily on widespread advertising, which included national television commercials, endorsements from social media personalities, and prominent billboard placements.
On Super Tuesday, March 3, 2020, Bloomberg managed to win only in American Samoa but fell short of the 15% delegate threshold in numerous states. He withdrew from the race on March 4, endorsing former Vice President Joe Biden and reallocating his campaign assets to bolster Biden’s path to the nomination and the subsequent general election. Bloomberg’s limited appeal among voters was attributed to underwhelming debate showings, his previous backing of stop-and-frisk in New York City, and accusations concerning a sexist environment at his company, Bloomberg LP.
Background
Michael Bloomberg is a billionaire entrepreneur and ex-mayor of New York City (2002–2013), with a political history spanning affiliations as a Democrat, Republican, and independent.
On March 5, 2019, Bloomberg declared he would not seek the presidency in 2020, urging Democrats to choose the candidate best positioned to defeat Donald Trump. In early 2019, he established Hawkfish, a data-driven technology firm aimed at supporting Democratic campaigns; initially active in Virginia and Kentucky before pivoting focus toward Bloomberg’s own presidential effort.
By October 14, 2019, reports surfaced suggesting Bloomberg might enter the race if Joe Biden withdrew; however, no action would be taken unless Biden exited. Billionaire investor Warren Buffett had voiced support for a potential Bloomberg candidacy as early as February 2019.
Pre-campaign activities
On November 7, 2019, Bloomberg initiated formal measures toward joining the 2020 United States presidential election. On November 19, he contributed $319,500 to the Democratic National Committee and $800,000 to the Democratic Grassroots Victory Fund. His campaign strategy involved concentrating on Super Tuesday states while skipping primaries in Iowa and New Hampshire. Additionally, Bloomberg did not attend his company’s second annual New Economy Forum in Beijing on November 20—a move interpreted as a sign of serious presidential ambitions.
The campaign operated out of offices provided by Bloomberg Philanthropies. On November 21, 2019, Bloomberg submitted a statement of candidacy to the Federal Election Commission, officially registering as a Democratic presidential contender. He emphasized that this filing was a procedural step pending a formal campaign announcement.
Campaign timeline
Bloomberg formally announced his candidacy on November 24, 2019, at an event in Virginia and through a YouTube video portraying himself as an effective "doer and problem solver." The campaign rolled out television advertisements across roughly 100 media markets within Super Tuesday states—territories representing approximately 40% of pledged delegates for the Democratic National Convention.
He committed to self-funding his campaign entirely without accepting outside donations. Beyond media spending, Bloomberg allocated between $15 million and $20 million toward registering approximately half a million voters across five key battleground states that had favored Trump in 2016.
According to John Micklethwait, editor-in-chief of Bloomberg News, because of Bloomberg’s ownership and candidacy status, the news organization refrained from conducting investigative reporting on him or other Democratic candidates during the primary season. Instead, Bloomberg News opted to publish or summarize investigations from "credible journalistic institutions." This editorial policy sparked objections from the Bloomberg Industry Group union. Subsequently, reporters from Bloomberg News were excluded by the Trump administration from attending further 2020 Trump campaign events.
Despite the no-investigation pledge regarding rivals, Bloomberg News released a critical article examining spending by Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren campaigns on Amazon services; this report drew criticism from Sanders’ team. It is noteworthy that Bloomberg had yet to disclose his own initial campaign expenditure report at that time.
In the small townships of Dixville Notch, New Hampshire, Bloomberg led the midnight voting tally. Although absent from the official ballot in the 2020 New Hampshire Democratic primary, he received three write-in votes: two in the Democratic primary and one in the Republican primary.
Debates
Bloomberg joined the 2020 Democratic primary race after most debates had already taken place and initially did not satisfy the DNC's donor requirements for the December 2019 and January 2020 debates, as he chose not to accept contributions. On January 31, 2020, the Democratic National Committee amended its rules by eliminating the individual donor threshold, enabling Bloomberg to participate in upcoming debates by meeting polling benchmarks.
February 19, 2020 debate
Bloomberg made his debate debut at the Nevada event on February 19. His performance received widespread negative feedback, with some critics labeling it as one of the poorest in presidential debate history. He was heavily questioned about his previous endorsement of stop-and-frisk policies and faced allegations of workplace harassment at Bloomberg LP, involving more than 60 women through over 40 legal claims. Competitors Elizabeth Warren and Joe Biden pressed him to release women bound by non-disclosure agreements, a request he declined.
After the debate, at a rally in Salt Lake City, Bloomberg stated that "Trump was the real victor" and cautioned that nominating a candidate appealing only to a narrow faction such as Senator Sanders would represent a "fatal mistake."
"Super Tuesday" results and campaign suspension
In the March 3, 2020 "Super Tuesday" contests, Bloomberg finished third or fourth across most of the fourteen states, earning 61 delegates out of more than 1,000 available. On March 4, he announced the suspension of his campaign, explaining, "I rely on data to guide decisions. After yesterday’s outcomes, the delegate math is nearly impossible—and no viable path remains to secure the nomination." Subsequently, Bloomberg endorsed Joe Biden.
Following his withdrawal from the race, Bloomberg contributed funds to organizations dedicated to registering voters of color, including $2 million to Collective Future for black voter registration efforts and $500,000 to Voto Latino targeting young Latino voters.
Spending and advertising
Bloomberg employed an atypical approach by foregoing early February primaries and caucuses to focus on the larger multi-state primaries on Super Tuesday. In response to delays and uncertainties surrounding the 2020 Iowa Democratic caucuses, he increased television advertising in existing markets and expanded his campaign workforce to approximately 2,000 staff members.
During Q4 2019, Bloomberg allocated $188 million toward his campaign expenditures: $132 million on television advertisements, $8.2 million on digital ads, $3.3 million for polling activities, $1.5 million on office rent, and $757,000 for air travel (including $646,000 spent on private jet usage). By January 2020, total spending had reached $300 million; by February it surpassed $500 million. His financial outlay pushed total primary spending beyond $1 billion by February—a record-setting amount early in a U.S. presidential election cycle.
Ultimately, Bloomberg expended over $1 billion during his campaign—exceeding the combined spending of all other Democratic contenders by April 2020.
Television ads
The Bloomberg campaign began airing advertisements nationwide on December 4, 2019. Within just five weeks after officially announcing his candidacy—by December 31—he had spent or committed $200 million on advertising, producing an unprecedented volume of campaign commercials within Democratic politics.
Additionally, Bloomberg invested $10 million in a single 60-second commercial aired during Super Bowl LIV on February 2, 2020.
Digital and social media campaigns
Bloomberg dedicated $100 million to anti-Trump advertisements on social media platforms in key battleground states. By January 2020, approximately $15 million had been invested in Google pay-per-click ads targeting keywords such as "impeachment," "climate change," and "gun safety." During the same period, Bloomberg spent $8.53 million on Facebook ads with specific audience targeting.
In addition to paid advertisements, the campaign collaborated with social media influencers through Tribe, compensating them $150 for sharing favorable posts. Bloomberg also teamed up with Meme 2020, an initiative led by Jerry Media CEO Mick Purzycki, to circulate self-referential ironic memes featuring Bloomberg. In February 2020, the campaign onboarded 500 "deputy digital organizers," each receiving $2,500 monthly to advocate for Bloomberg across their personal social media accounts and via text messaging.
Billboards
Ahead of President Trump's rallies in Las Vegas, Nevada, and Phoenix, Arizona, Bloomberg's campaign secured billboard placements in February 2020. Positioned along Trump's motorcade route and near the Trump International Hotel Las Vegas, these billboards displayed messages such as "Donald Trump cheats at golf," "Donald Trump eats burnt steak," "Donald Trump lost the popular vote," and "Donald Trump went broke running a casino."
Transphobic comments
In 2020, BuzzFeed News published footage from 2019 showing Bloomberg expressing skepticism about the effectiveness of Democratic messaging on transgender rights. He stated, "If your conversation during a presidential election is about some guy wearing a dress... that's not a winning formula for most people." These remarks sparked widespread criticism for being transphobic. Bloomberg responded by describing the comment as "a poor attempt to describe how some who oppose transgender equality think" and reaffirmed his "unwavering support for equality for transgender Americans." A spokesperson pointed to Bloomberg’s signing of a comprehensive transgender civil rights law in April 2002 as evidence of his commitment.
Prison phone bank
On December 24, 2019, The Intercept reported that the Bloomberg campaign had inadvertently utilized prison labor through ProCom, a call center company operating two facilities within Oklahoma state prisons. Female inmates at Dr. Eddie Warrior Correctional Center were making calls to voters in California. The campaign confirmed the calls but stated it was unaware they originated from a prison and subsequently terminated its association with the company.
Plagiarized campaign materials
In February 2020, The Intercept exposed that parts of Bloomberg’s policy proposals were plagiarized from news organizations, scholarly research, and policy groups. The campaign explained that this lack of proper attribution resulted from using MailChimp’s email platform, which does not support footnote citations.
"Stop and frisk" approval
On February 5, 2015, speaking at the Aspen Institute, Bloomberg advocated for police to confiscate firearms from minorities aged 15 to 25 due to elevated violence rates. He also supported aggressive stop-and-frisk tactics, suggesting officers should "throw them up against the wall and frisk them." His endorsement of stop-and-frisk during his tenure as mayor faced extensive backlash from both the public and law enforcement officials. During his presidential campaign, Bloomberg later distanced himself from the policy.
He conceded that stop-and-frisk disproportionately affected minority communities because crime was concentrated there but faced allegations of racism related to his statements. Bloomberg asserted that he inherited stop-and-frisk policies, reduced their occurrence by 95% before leaving office, and regretted not acting sooner. Nonetheless, media investigations challenged this narrative by highlighting his previous statements and actions supporting and expanding these practices while mayor.
Nina Turner, national co-chair for Bernie Sanders's campaign, demanded that Bloomberg withdraw from the race over this controversy.
Remarks on redlining
In 2008, amid the housing and financial meltdown, Bloomberg remarked at a university event that the turmoil "began when banks were pressured to lend broadly," including in economically disadvantaged areas, which led to approvals for borrowers with weaker credit profiles. When footage of these comments emerged in February 2020, many interpreted them as partially attributing the crisis to the cessation of redlining. A spokesperson for Bloomberg clarified that he had consistently opposed and actively fought against redlining during his tenure as mayor.
Allegations of offensive or sexist language; confidentiality agreements
A 1990 publication titled The Wit and Wisdom of Michael Bloomberg featured quotes credited to Bloomberg, some containing vulgar and sexist remarks directed at staff. For instance, Bloomberg Terminals were described as devices that "do everything, including give you [oral sex]," alongside other comments that objectified women.
A former female sales representative claimed Bloomberg joked about receiving oral sex from women as a wedding gift and made crude remarks about women he found attractive. Another statement implied that women who wanted recognition for their intelligence would visit the library rather than Bloomingdale's.
During the February 2020 debate, Bloomberg was criticized for restricting women who had settled lawsuits against his company from publicly discussing their experiences. On February 21, he announced an offer to release these women from their non-disclosure agreements if they wished to speak out. This gesture received varied responses from political adversaries and the public alike.
Suspended Twitter troll accounts
Twitter took action against 70 accounts supporting Bloomberg's presidential bid, suspending them for violating policies related to "creating multiple accounts to post duplicative content," sharing identical Tweets or hashtags across several accounts, and orchestrating coordinated artificial engagement.
Altered debate video
On February 20, 2020, Bloomberg’s official Twitter account posted a manipulated clip from the previous night’s Democratic debate, edited to suggest a 20-second pause following Bloomberg’s question. The campaign described this clip as a "tongue-in-cheek" joke amidst ensuing criticism.
Political stances
Bloomberg has emphasized tackling climate change by financing Beyond Carbon—an initiative modeled after the successful Beyond Coal campaign he helped establish—which played a role in shutting down half of the nation’s coal-fired power plants.
He supports broadening U.S. healthcare coverage toward a hybrid single-payer model described as "Medicare for all for people that are uncovered."
His economic platform focuses on rejuvenating mid-sized cities across the American heartland by increasing federal investment in community colleges, vocational training programs, and research partnerships that link education with workforce opportunities. He advocates for expanding unionization and collective bargaining rights to include gig workers, contractors, and franchise employees; raising the federal minimum wage to $15 per hour; enlarging the Earned Income Tax Credit; and creating business resource centers designed to support entrepreneurs.
Bloomberg pledged up to $1 billion to back whichever Democrat secured the presidential nomination, whether Bernie Sanders or Elizabeth Warren. Sanders’ campaign declined this financial support if nominated; Bloomberg honored this choice and initially refrained from running advertisements against primary opponents. Nonetheless, on February 17, Bloomberg launched an ad criticizing supporters of Sanders for engaging in online harassment.
His long-term political approach involves funding nonprofit organizations aligned with his priorities. He is the principal backer of Everytown for Gun Safety, supports initiatives addressing climate change, and invests in organizations promoting urban innovation.
Endorsements
Bloomberg encountered accusations from various media sources alleging that he "purchased endorsements." As reported by HuffPost, he contributed millions to candidates running for Congress prior to obtaining their official support. Organizations affiliated with Bloomberg, including Bloomberg Philanthropies, awarded grants and offered training programs to mayors across the country, thereby cultivating a broad base of political allies. One notable instance involved securing an endorsement from Wayne County Executive Warren Evans following the employment of Evans's spouse.
Post-campaign developments
On March 4, 2020, Bloomberg ended his presidential bid and publicly backed the Joe Biden 2020 presidential campaign. Subsequently, on March 20, he donated $18 million to the Democratic National Committee (DNC), alongside contributions of $2 million to the Black voter registration organization Collective Future, $500,000 to Voto Latino, and $2 million to the progressive advocacy group Swing Left. He committed between $15 and $20 million toward voter registration efforts in five battleground states and allocated $5 million to Stacey Abrams's Fair Fight 2020 initiative.
Although he initially assured his campaign staff of job security until November 2020, Bloomberg dismissed his team on March 20 during the unfolding COVID-19 pandemic in the United States. Several former employees found new roles within the DNC or other political campaigns. On March 23, ex-staff members initiated a class-action lawsuit; in response, Bloomberg guaranteed continuation of health insurance coverage through April and later declared on April 27 that he would fund healthcare expenses for his former campaign personnel through November 2020.