Reuters- Hedge funds shifted bets in the hotly contested U.S. presidential race in January when they wrote bigger checks to Democratic contender Barack Obama after favoring his Democratic rival Hillary Clinton in 2007.
The $1.8 trillion hedge fund industry donated $50,450 to Obama last month when the Illinois senator won wide support among voters in early caucuses and primaries, new data show.
Clinton, who lost Iowa but defied pollsters by winning the New Hampshire primary, took in $18,800, the lowest donated to either party’s front runners.
In comparison, hedge funds gave $26,400 to Republican front-runner Sen. John McCain in January, according to the data compiled for Reuters by the Center for Responsive Politics, a nonpartisan campaign finance research group.
