PHOENIX — It's not a stretch to say that first-time candidate Blake Masters couldn't have won Arizona's Republican primary for the U.S. Senate without $15 million in spending by his benefactor and former boss, Silicon Valley billionaire Peter Thiel.
Thiel's money helped Masters counter the $14 million that another political newcomer, Jim Lamon, poured into his own campaign. The result was a nonstop barrage of Masters vs. Lamon TV ads that wallpapered Phoenix-area TV screens for weeks.
Republican voters may have learned a few things about the 36-year-old Masters.
But Thiel - one of the more successful investors in Silicon Valley history - keeps a low profile.
Thiel Has 2 U.S. Senate Candidates
So why is Thiel funding the Senate race of his former right-hand man, and what does he expect in return from Masters and a second Thiel-backed and Trump-endorsed U.S. Senate candidate, J.D. Vance of Ohio?
"What Thiel wants is money, to growth (his) wealth... and political influence," Max Chafkin, a journalist who covers the tech industry for Bloomberg Businessweek, said on this weekend's "Sunday Square Off."
Chafkin wrote a biography of Thiel, "The Contrarian: Peter Thiel and Silicon Valley's Pursuit of Power."
"Thiel is somebody who's very much combined those two things throughout his career," Chafkin said.
Chafkin discusses Thiel's pivotal role in Silicon Valley, his approach to business and politics, and what Masters might be doing if he had never met Thiel.
Masters will face Democratic U.S. Sen. Mark Kelly in the November election.
For the third time since 2018, the winner of the Arizona U.S. Senate race could decide which party controls the chamber.
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Charter School Owners Big Givers
Thiel's $15 million accounted for 92 percent of the funding for the Saving Arizona Super PAC that helped Masters, according to Federal Election Commission records.
Other top funders of the Thiel PAC have been Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, "the Winklevoss twins," who chipped in $200,000, according to Federal Election Commission reports.
Michael and Olga Block, founders of the Basis chain of charter schools in Arizona, and their online education business contributed a total of $100,000.
Came to Trump's Rescue in '16
Thiel isn't a household name like Mark Zuckerberg. But there might not be a Mark Zuckerberg without Peter Thiel. Thiel was an early investor in Facebook and a longtime board member, until stepping down earlier this year.
Thiel did step out of the political shadows in 2016, coming to Donald Trump's rescue at the lowest moment of Trump's first campaign for president - the release of the "Access Hollywood" tapes.
Thiel's politics are at the extreme of the libertarian spectrum. He's expressed doubts about the future of democracy: “I no longer believe that freedom and democracy are compatible,” Thiel said in 2009.
Decision 2022
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