Jul 8, 2021 - Politics & Policy

Toyota to cease donations to election objectors

Lachlan Markay

The Toyota logo is displayed on the exterior of City Toyota May 11, 2010 in Daly City, California. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

Toyota has announced it will cease donations to Republicans who objected to the certification of President Biden's electoral college victory.

Driving the news: The company revealed its decision, first reported by the Detroit News, in a statement on Thursday, saying it understood that its PAC's donations to those objectors, which far outpaced those of any other company, "troubled some stakeholders."

Toyota's statement came less than two weeks after Axios reported the Japanese automaker donated $55,000 to 37 election objectors, the most of any corporate PAC by a significant margin.

Between the lines: Toyota faced immediate backlash over its donations, which went to some of the most outspoken election conspiracy theorists in Congress.

On Thursday, the Lincoln Project, an anti-Trump group founded by former GOP political consultants, unveiled a TV ad attacking Toyota over its donations.

What they're saying: "Toyota is committed to supporting and promoting actions that further our democracy," the company said in its statement.

"Our bipartisan PAC equally supports Democrats and Republicans running for Congress," it added. "In fact, in 2021, the vast majority of contributions went to Democrats and Republicans who supported the certification of the 2020 election."

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Toyota to cease donations to election objectors

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