USSC Associate Professor Dr David Smith is featured in an article on SBS News about Republican nominee Donald Trump's shifting political affiliations throughout his career as a real estate developer and celebrity.
"Whatever his business interests involved, that was who he was donating to at the time," said Dr Smith.
"When he was in heavily Democratic jurisdictions like New York or California, he would donate to Democrats, he would appear at fundraisers with Democrats, and when he was asked about his political views, he would often give answers that were broadly in line with Democratic Party thinking around things like gun control and abortion — although not always."
Election Watch 202424 July 2024
Donald Trump was once a registered Democrat and party donor. So why did he jump ship?
![](https://cdn.sanity.io/images/ooh1fq7e/production/d286061c28a9a58365af769327d941616c2973f6-3571x2420.jpg/Donald%20Trump%20GettyImages-901874084.jpg?rect=0,206,3571,2009&w=320&h=180&fit=min&auto=format)