POLITICS
Related, Equinox Owner Mostly Generous to GOP
Stephen Ross, caught up in Trump fundraiser fl ap, reliably supports Republicans
BY DUNCAN OSBORNE
While the owner of the Equinox,
Blink, SoulCycle, and Pure Yoga
brands has presented himself as
bipartisan in his participation in
politics, his record indicates that he has been
far more generous to Republicans than to Democrats.
“I started my business with nothing and a
reason for my engagement with our leaders is
my deep concern for creating jobs and growing
our country’s economy,” Stephen Ross, the
founder and chairman of The Related Companies,
the parent of the fi tness brands, said in
a statement. “I have been, and will continue to
be, an outspoken champion of racial equality,
inclusion, diversity, public education, and environmental
sustainability, and I have and will
continue to support leaders on both sides of the
aisle to address these challenges.”
Ross was caught up in controversy when the
Washington Post reported on August 6 that he
would host an August 9 fundraiser for Donald
Trump’s re-election campaign at his Hamptons
HUDSON YARDS/ YOUTUBE.COM
Trump fundraiser Stephen M. Ross, chairman of The Related
Companies, which owns fi tness brands including Equinox and Soul
Cycle.
estate. There were immediate calls for boycotts
of the fi tness brands, and the Equinox and
Blink subsidiaries issued statements asserting
that Ross was merely a “passive investor”
in the companies. Ross issued his statement on
August 7. The Related Companies, which is privately
held, bought Equinox in 2005 for $505
million.
“I always have been an active participant
in the democratic process,” he wrote. “While
some prefer to sit outside of the process and
criticize, I prefer to engage directly and support
the things I deeply care about. I have known
Donald Trump for 40 years, and while we agree
on some issues, we strongly disagree on many
others and I have never been bashful about expressing
my opinions.”
While Ross has donated to the federal political
campaigns of Democrats, notably to Senator
Chuck Schumer and Representative Jerry Nadler,
both of New York, he has also donated to
plenty of Republicans who hold or sought seats
in the US Senate or the House. The greater difference
is in his support for political action and
party committees.
In the current election cycle, Ross has given
just under $50,000 the Republican National
Committee (RNC) and $33,600 to National
Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC). He
➤ STEPHEN ROSS, continued on p.7
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