Pro-Israel megadonor Miriam Adelson takes center stage at Trump’s inauguration
As third-biggest contributor to the US president’s campaign, Tel Aviv-born physician, philanthropist gave $100 million in October, hosted inaugural ball alongside Mark Zuckerberg

JTA — Viewers tuning in early to broadcasts of US President Donald Trump’s inauguration ceremony on Monday could catch a glimpse of a woman with long white hair standing next to Hillary Clinton and speaking animatedly with Trump’s chief of staff, Susie Wiles.
The woman was Miriam Adelson, the pro-Israel megadonor who helped propel Trump to both electoral wins and who hosted an inaugural ball alongside Mark Zuckerberg, the Meta CEO who has more recently engaged with Trump.
Adelson, 79, born in Tel Aviv and raised in Haifa, is a major funder of pro-Israel political activity and a prolific donor to Jewish causes, carrying on a legacy she built with her late husband, casino magnate Sheldon Adelson.
The Adelson family has long been one of the largest sources of campaign money for Republican candidates and has backed Trump during each of the last three general elections.
Now, the physician and philanthropist is wielding an estimated net worth of $35 billion on her own. She has carried on her late husband’s politics, though she is seen as more deliberate in her decision-making.
Adelson gave Trump’s campaign at least $100 million in October, making her the third biggest donor to his campaign, after Elon Musk, who is playing a key role in the administration, and the reclusive billionaire Timothy Mellon.

During the campaign, she introduced Trump before he gave a speech on fighting antisemitism.
She also appeared at a ceremony at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate marking the one-year anniversary of Hamas’s Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel.

From our archive: 5 things to know about Miriam Adelson
Some pro-Israel Republicans who were concerned that JD Vance, Trump’s vice president, might extend his isolationist outlook to Israel were reassured after Vance and his wife Usha sat with Adelson at a dinner at Mar-a-Lago earlier this month.

Adelson and the Vances appeared together again on Sunday night at a pre-inauguration party.