Former President Donald Trump scheduled to appear at Derby for fundraiser

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WAVE) - Former President Donald Trump is scheduled to appear at Churchill Downs on Derby Day for a super PAC event.

A flier tweeted by New York Times reporter Maggie Haberman shows Trump’s super PAC, “MAGA Again!” as the organizers of the event.

Trump is said to be the special guest for the event, which the flier has listed at Churchill Downs on May 7. No information was provided on when or where inside Churchill Downs the event would take place.

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Churchill Downs provided the following comment through its spokesman, Darren Rogers, stating the company would not speak on private events not organized by the race track.

“Every year, many high profile individuals choose to attend the Kentucky Derby, including prominent political figures,” Rogers said in a statement. “We do not comment on or confirm the attendance of individual guests or those holding private events not coordinated by Churchill Downs.”

On Friday, when asked specifically if Churchill Downs allows candidates or political groups to host fundraisers at the Derby, Rogers said this:

“Churchill Downs does not coordinate any private or political fundraisers during the Derby.”

Other Republican leaders listed on the flier possibly making an appearance include MAGA Again’s chairman Pam Bondi, former Acting Director of U.S. National Intelligence Richard Grenell, former acting U.S. Attorney General Matthew Whitaker and former advisor to the President, Kimberly Guilfoyle.

The flier said tickets to the event run $75,000 per person.

WAVE News reached out to several Louisville-area GOP leaders for comment and confirmation of the event. No response was received at the time of writing.

The Kentucky Derby claims a long list of Presidents in attendance, either before, during or after holding office.

It dates back to Harry Truman, before he was in office.

The most recent was Trump, who previously appeared at the Kentucky Derby back in 1999 with his current wife, Melania Trump.

It’s been hard to tell in recent years if the former President is actually a fan of the Derby. Last year, he called Derby winner, Medina Spirit, a junky after the betamethasone controversy.

In 2019, he was also critical when Maximum Security was disqualified for interference, saying “the best horse did not win.”

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