Democratic National Committee chair Ken Martin, standing alongside Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker, at an event in Chicago on Aug. 5, 2025. (DNC)
Asked for comment on never returning Epstein's donations, a DNC spokesperson brushed off the funds, which were given in the mid-1990s, in a statement to Fox News Digital.
"Instead of trying to blow the cobwebs off of decades-old contributions and defunct campaign accounts, Donald Trump should release the Epstein files," the spokesperson said.
Scrutiny over donations and any conflicts they present is common in political campaigning. The RNC faced calls to return what Business Insider found to be $1.4 million from its former finance chair Steve Wynn, a casino mogul who stepped down from his role with the committee and with Wynn Resorts after facing numerous allegations of sexual misconduct and settling lawsuits over them.
The DNC also accepted more than $90,000 from the private hedge fund of billionaire Glenn Dubin, who has close ties to Epstein. At least two top Republicans, Sen. David McCormick, R-Pa., and Vivek Ramaswamy, also accepted donations from Dubin. Epstein invested millions in a hedge fund managed by Dubin. One of Epstein’s most vocal accusers, the late Virginia Giuffre, testified in 2015 that associate Ghislaine Maxwell forced her to have sexual relations with Dubin. Dubin was never criminally charged.
Epstein donated on a smaller scale to Republicans, including President George H.W. Bush.
Epstein first pleaded guilty in 2008 to state charges of soliciting a minor for prostitution before facing federal charges in 2019 of trafficking and abusing underage women. Epstein died in what authorities said was suicide while in jail awaiting trial.
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The DCCC received a $10,000 check from Epstein in 2018 but said the money was unsolicited and immediately refunded.
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The late Don Fowler, former DNC chairman, said in a statement after Epstein was charged, that his committee's donations were too old to address, according to CNBC.
"Go back and give money that he gave 20 years ago? Are you nuts?" Fowler said.
Ashley Oliver is a reporter for Fox News Digital and FOX Business, covering the Justice Department and legal affairs. Email story tips to ashley.oliver@fox.com.
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/hold-dnc-holds-onto-decades-old-jeffrey-epstein-donations-after-other-democrats-returned-theirs