Top CEOs consider pulling GOP support over lawmakers’ plan to challenge election results: report

More than 30 CEOs are considering pulling their financial support for the Republicans who plan to challenge the Electoral College results in Congress, according to Yale School of Management’s Jeffrey Sonnenfeld.

Sonnenfeld told CNBC that he surveyed 33 chief executives during a virtual conference on Tuesday and 100 percent of respondents answered “yes” when asked if CEOs should warn lobbyists privately that their firms will no longer support those who will challenge the election results.

President-elect Joe Biden won 306 votes in the Electoral College compared to President Trump’s 232 after registering wins in key battleground states like Arizona, Georgia, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin and Michigan.

However, Trump has yet to concede defeat in the presidential election and has claimed many times that the contest was tainted by widespread voter fraud. Federal election officials have stated that there is no evidence of widespread voter fraud.

Congress convenes Wednesday to count the votes of the Electoral College, and 13 Republican senators have vowed to object to the election results. The long-shot effort to overturn a state’s results would require majorities in both chambers.

Participants in the survey were leaders in finance, manufacturing and the pharmaceutical industry but were anonymous, Sonnenfeld said. He also said that the leaders want to spread the message that “it’s time to move on and respect the Constitution.” 

“The GOP acting this way, these GOP members are certainly not the voice of American business, large or small, so they’re talking about cutting off support,” Sonnenfeld said.

He also said “we haven’t seen them put the money where their mouth is previously” when asked if the CEOs will actually pull financial support from the Republicans. 

Americans for Prosperity, the conservative advocacy group backed by billionaire Charles Koch, said on Tuesday it supports the certification of Biden’s win, and pro-business organizations like the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the Business Roundtable and the National Association of Manufacturers have pushed back on lawmakers’ plans to object to the election results.