Disney is Donating to Republicans Who Voted for “Don’t Say Gay”
The company's donations signal an end to frosty relations with Republican lawmakers who stripped it of its right to self-governance.
After a two-year pause, The Walt Disney Co. has quietly resumed political donations to Florida politicians — including several Republicans who voted for the state’s “Don’t Say Gay” law.
While a company donating to politicians who act in its best interests isn’t surprising, the green-lighting of donations to those who supported the “Parental Rights in Education” law appears to signal a final acquiescence to the very politicians who retaliated against the company for its political stances.
Disney first became enmeshed in controversy over the law when the company, under former CEO Bob Chapek, refused to weigh in on its provisions seeking to bar LGBTQ content from classrooms and school libraries, gag the free speech of educators and students, and to discourage school officials from affirming LGBTQ students’ identities or using correct pronouns — even in instances where parents had requested such accommodations.
Following internal backlash from LGBTQ employees and their allies — primarily in the form of employee walkouts, anonymous accusations of censorship, or external groups picketing outside Disney properties — the company expressed its opposition to the law.
At the time, Disney also announced it would temporarily suspend political donations to all Florida politicians and “reassess” its political giving policies.
Chapek also vowed to increase the company’s support for advocacy groups fighting against anti-LGBTQ legislation in other states.
The company’s position placed it squarely in the sights of Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis — whose opposition to LGBTQ rights was a calling card of his now-failed presidential campaign — who appeared to target the company for retaliation.
Soon after, DeSantis’s allies in the Republican-dominated legislature voted, on a party-line vote, to revoke privileges that allowed Disney to govern itself and install a board of DeSantis loyalists — including the infamous Moms for Liberty co-founder Bridget Ziegler — to make economic development decisions for the special tax district overseeing Disney’s Central Florida properties.
Disney sued the state, claiming that its takeover of the now-renamed Central Florida Tourism Oversight District was a form of political retaliation for exercising its free speech rights.
A federal judge dismissed the lawsuit in February, and in March, the company settled with the state. As part of that agreement, Disney agreed to cede control over the tax district to the DeSantis-appointed board and work with it to upgrade the company’s Florida theme parks and the support services that they may consume.
In April, Disney once again began providing in-kind contributions to political committees, most of which are affiliated with specific lawmakers.
According to the Orlando Sentinel, Walt Disney Parks and Resorts is listed as providing more than $87,000 in in-kind contributions, in which a donor provides services, products, event space, or other benefits valued at a certain monetary level.
State Sen. Geraldine Thompson (D-Ocoee), whom Disney allowed to host a fundraiser earlier this month at Walt Disney World, told the Sentinel last month that she was told the company is still only providing in-kind contributions, as opposed to writing checks to candidates or political action committees. None of the in-kind contributions includes details of what was explicitly provided.
Among the in-kind contributions made by Disney is a donation valued at $9,566 to Citizens for Solutions, a political action committee chaired by State Sen. Jason Brodeur (R-Sanford), who not only voted for the “Don’t Say Gay” law, but also the bill to wrest away Disney’s right of self-governance.
Brodeur also recently proposed a bill that would allow anybody accused of racism, sexism, homophobia, or transphobia to sue their detractors for defamation.
That bill failed in committee this session, but is likely to be revived in future legislative sessions as elected Republicans continue to mount attacks against their detractors.
Disney provided an identical amount to Friends of Joe Gruters, the Republican state senator and former state GOP chair from Sarasota, who also supported the “Don’t Say Gay” bill.
The company contributed $16,423 to the People Above Politics political action committee, which is affiliated with State Rep. Demi Busatta Cabrera (R-Coral Gables), and an identical amount to the Florida Farmers and Ranchers United political action committee, affiliated with state Rep. Josie Tomkow (R-Polk City).
Both Republicans voted in lockstep with their fellow party members to pass the “Don’t Say Gay” law and punish Disney for opposing the bill.
Disney’s largest single in-kind contribution for the most recent reporting period was $28,487 to Daley for Florida, a political action committee backing State Rep. Dan Daley (D-Coral Springs), who opposed the law and the bill targeting Disney’s Central Florida properties.
The company also contributed $6,212 to the Keep Orange County Safe political action committee, run by Tallahassee-based attorney Mark Herron.
Prior to suspending political donations, Disney had given about $55 million in direct and in-kind contributions to Republicans, Democrats, and various political action committees over a 28-year period. That included $5 million contributed in 2020, and more than $2 million in the first two months of 2022, just prior to the passage of the “Don’t Say Gay” law.
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