Stephen A. Schwarzman, a 1965 graduate of Abington Senior High School and a billionaire businessman, announced on Friday that he will support Republican frontrunner Donald Trump as a “vote for change” in the 2024 presidential election.

According to Axios, Schwarzman, one of the biggest political donors on Wall Street, plans to donate to Trump and various Republican Senate candidates, which “gives Trump access to a potent network of Republican donors Schwarzman has cultivated.”

“The dramatic rise of antisemitism has led me to focus on the consequences of upcoming elections with greater urgency,” Schwarzman said in a statement. “I share the concern of most Americans that our economic, immigration and foreign policies are taking the country in the wrong direction. For these reasons, I am planning to vote for change and support Donald Trump for President. In addition, I will be supporting Republican Senate candidates and other Republicans up and down the ticket.”

CNN reported that Schwarzman, a lifelong Republican and CEO of the private equity firm Blackstone, had previously declined to back a particular GOP presidential candidate for years after serving as a Trump administration adviser in 2016. He chaired a business advisory council which was reportedly disbanded after Trump said that a violent Charlottesville white nationalist rally had good people “on both sides.”

“Bigotry, hatred and extremism are an affront to core American values and have no place in this country,” Schwarzman said at the time.

MSNBC’s coverage on the announcement is below:

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