Trump Gaza board member gave $1.5M to AIPAC-linked super PAC
United Democracy Project is closely linked to AIPAC and has spent heavily in elections against candidates critical of Israel
WASHINGTON (MNTV) — Billionaire financier Marc Rowan, a member of President Donald Trump’s Gaza “Board of Peace,” has donated $1.5 million this year to a super PAC affiliated with the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, raising questions over his political interests as he helps shape plans for Gaza’s future.
Federal Election Commission filings show Rowan, CEO of Apollo Global Management, gave $1 million to the United Democracy Project in March and another $500,000 on July 23, according to reporting by The Intercept.
The United Democracy Project is closely linked to AIPAC and has spent heavily in U.S. elections against candidates critical of Israel.
On the same day as Rowan’s second donation, the group spent nearly $50,000 on campaign mailers targeting Abdul El-Sayed, a progressive pro-Palestine Senate candidate in Michigan.
It also spent about $100,000 on phone banking against former Democratic Rep. Cori Bush in Missouri as she challenged pro-Israel Rep. Wesley Bell.
There is no evidence that Rowan’s donations were earmarked for those specific campaigns.
Rowan, whose net worth exceeds $8 billion, sits on Trump’s “Board of Peace,” which is tasked with advancing the administration’s Gaza plan.
His dual role has drawn criticism from Palestinian rights advocates.
Raed Jarrar, advocacy director at Democracy for the Arab World Now, said greater transparency was needed over whose interests Rowan represents.
“Palestinians did not choose him, and neither did American voters,” Jarrar told The Intercept.
Rowan has also repeatedly criticized Palestine advocacy campus protests, describing some of the activism as antisemitic.
At a February meeting of Trump’s Gaza board, he discussed the territory largely in terms of its economic and real estate potential despite the devastation caused by Israel’s genocide.
“The potential here is tremendous,” Rowan said.
He estimated Gaza’s coastline at $50 billion, rebuilt housing at $30 billion and infrastructure projects at another $30 billion.
More than 80% of Gaza has been left in ruins after years of Israeli bombardment.
Rowan argued that placing such assets under the Board of Peace could enable what he called “conflict-free management of the resources to benefit the Gazans.”
AIPAC has strongly supported continued U.S. backing for Israel and has endorsed Trump’s Gaza plan.
Rowan and the United Democracy Project did not respond to The Intercept’s requests for comment.
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