{{Short description|American political advisor}} {{Orphan|date=August 2024}} '''Dmitri Mehlhorn''' is an American political advisor. He is an active figure in [[anti-Trump]] and [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic Party]] politics in the United States.
== Work with Reid Hoffman == A political advisor to [[Reid Hoffman]], the co-founder of [[LinkedIn]] and a Democratic donor,<ref>{{cite news |last1=Goldmacher |first1=Shane |title=Top Democratic Donor, Reid Hoffman, Gives $250,000 to a Nikki Haley Super PAC |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2023/12/05/us/politics/nikki-haley-reid-hoffman-donation.html |access-date=15 July 2024 |work=[[The New York Times]] |date=5 December 2023}}</ref> Melhorn became involved in politics in 2015, when Trump announced his candidacy for President of the United States. After Trump [[2016 United States presidential election|gained the presidency in 2016]], he became involved in efforts "to get him to not win another election" through social networks and political activism.<ref>{{Cite web | url=https://theintercept.com/2023/05/06/deconstructed-dmitri-mehlhorn-democratic-party/ | title=Deconstructed: Dmitri Mehlhorn Is Financing a Political Counterrevolution | url-access=registration | website=The Intercept| date=6 May 2023 }}</ref>
=== Controversies === In 2018, through Mehlhorn leadership of Investing in Us, Hoffman's political strategy investment firm, Hoffman and Mehlhorn were implicated in funding a [[disinformation]] campaign intended to influence the [[2017 United States Senate special election in Alabama]].<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |date=2018-12-20 |title=Secret Experiment in Alabama Senate Race Imitated Russian Tactics - The New York Times |website=[[The New York Times]] |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/12/19/us/alabama-senate-roy-jones-russia.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181220010545/https://www.nytimes.com/2018/12/19/us/alabama-senate-roy-jones-russia.html |archive-date=2018-12-20 |access-date=2025-05-15 }}</ref> Mehlhorn and Hoffman denied direct involvement or knowledge of the campaign despite it being worked on by Investing in Us employee Sara K. Hudson alongside the disinformation research firm [[New Knowledge|New Knowledge (later renamed Yonder)]].<ref name=":0" />
In 2024, following the [[attempted assassination of Donald Trump in Pennsylvania]], Mehlhorn suggested in an email that the shooting may have been a [[false flag]] incident.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Lorenz |first1=Taylor |author-link=Taylor Lorenz |title='BlueAnon' conspiracy theories flood social media after Trump rally shooting |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2024/07/14/blueanon-conspiracy-theories-trump-rally-shooting/ |access-date=15 July 2024 |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] |date=15 July 2024 |archive-date=14 July 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240714224035/https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2024/07/14/blueanon-conspiracy-theories-trump-rally-shooting/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Goba |first1=Kadia |title=Top Democratic strategist pushed reporters to consider 'staged' shooting |url=https://www.semafor.com/article/07/14/2024/top-democrat-pushed-reporters-to-consider-staged-shooting |access-date=15 July 2024 |work=[[Semafor (website)|Semafor]] |date=14 July 2024 |archive-date=14 July 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240714235147/https://www.semafor.com/article/07/14/2024/top-democrat-pushed-reporters-to-consider-staged-shooting |url-status=live }}</ref> He subsequently apologized and indicated he regretted sending the message.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Singh |first=Kanishka |date=July 15, 2024 |title=Adviser to Democratic donor apologizes for saying Trump shooting may be staged |url=https://www.reuters.com/world/us/adviser-democratic-donor-apologizes-saying-trump-shooting-may-be-staged-2024-07-15/ |work=Reuters}}</ref> Shortly after, Reid Hoffman announced Mehlhorn’s departure as Hoffman’s chief political strategist.<ref>{{Cite news |date=July 19, 2024 |title=Biden donor Reid Hoffman splits with top adviser over strategic differences |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2024/07/19/hoffman-mehlhorn-biden-trump/ |newspaper=The Washington Post}}</ref>
== Personal life == In February 2025, it was reported that Mehlhorn had moved to Canada.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Lerer |first1=Lisa |last2=Epstein |first2=Reid J. |last3=Schleifer |first3=Theodore |title=Venting at Democrats and Fearing Trump, Liberal Donors Pull Back Cash |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2025/02/16/us/politics/donors-democrats-trump.html |work=The New York Times |date=16 February 2025 |quote="I believe the USA is entirely over as the kind of political project that lends itself to your work,” wrote Mr. Mehlhorn, who will not be around to directly experience the consequences of Democrats’ defeat. He has moved to Canada."}}</ref>
== References == {{reflist}}
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Mehlhorn, Dmitri}} [[Category:Living people]] [[Category:American conspiracy theorists]] [[Category:American political consultants]] [[Category:21st-century American people]] [[Category:Year of birth missing (living people)]]