Bezos and Sanchez arrive in Venice as protesters say their wedding highlights wealth inequality

VENICE, Italy (AP) — Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sanchez arrived in Venice, Italy, on Wednesday ahead of their star-studded weekend wedding, which has galvanized an assortment of protesters.

Bezos waved from a water taxi as he and Sanchez arrived at the dock of the Aman Hotel on the Grand Canal with two security boats in tow.

Their wedding has drawn protests by groups who view it as a sign of the growing disparity between the haves and have-nots, while residents complain it exemplifies the way their needs are disregarded in the era of mass tourism to the historic lagoon city.

About a dozen Venetian organizations — including housing advocates, anti-cruise ship campaigners and university groups — have united to protest the multi-day event under the banner “No Space for Bezos,” a play on words also referring to the bride’s recent space flight.

They have staged small-scale protests, unfurling anti-Bezos banners on iconic Venetian sites. They were joined Monday by Greenpeace and the British group “Everyone Hates Elon,” which has smashed Teslas to protest Elon Musk, to unfurl a giant banner in St. Mark’s Square protesting purported tax breaks for billionaires.

On Wednesday, other activists launched a float down the Grand Canal featuring a mannequin of Bezos clinging onto an Amazon box, his fists full of fake dollars. The British publicity firm that announced the stunt said it wasn't a protest of the wedding “but against unchecked wealth, media control, and the growing privatisation of public spaces.”

Bezos’ representatives have not commented on the protests.

The local activists had planned a more organized protest for Saturday, aiming to obstruct access to canals with boats to prevent guests from reaching a wedding venue. They modified the protest to a march from the train station after claiming a victory, asserting that their pressure forced organizers to change the venue to the Arsenale, a more easily secured site beyond Venice's congested center.

“It will be a strong, decisive protest, but peaceful,’’ said Federica Toninello, an activist with the Social Housing Assembly network. “We want it to be like a party, with music, to make clear what we want our Venice to look like."

Among the 200 guests confirmed to be attending the wedding are Mick Jagger, Ivanka Trump, Oprah Winfrey, Katy Perry and Leonardo DiCaprio.

Venice, renowned for its romantic canal vistas, hosts hundreds of weddings each year, not infrequently those of the rich and famous. Previous celebrity weddings, like that of George Clooney to human rights lawyer Amal Alamuddin in 2014, were embraced by the public. Hundreds turned out to wish the couple well at City Hall.

Bezos has a different political and business profile, said Tommaso Cacciari, a prominent figure in the movement that successfully pushed for a ban on cruise ships over 25,000 tons traveling through the Giudecca Canal in central Venice.

“Bezos is not a Hollywood actor,’’ Cacciari said. “He is an ultra-billionaire who sat next to Donald Trump during the inauguration, who contributed to his reelection and is contributing in a direct and heavy way to this new global obscurantism.’’

Critics cite Amazon’s labor practices, ongoing tax disputes with European governments and Bezos’ political associations as reasons for concern.

Activists also argue that the Bezos wedding exemplifies broader failures in municipal governance, particularly the prioritization of tourism over residents' needs. They cite measures such as the day-tripper tax — which critics argue reinforces Venice’s image as a theme park — as ineffective. Chief among their concerns is the lack of investment in affordable housing and essential services.

City officials have defended the wedding. Mayor Luigi Brugnaro called the event an honor for Venice, and the city denied the wedding would cause disruptions.

"Venice once again reveals itself to be a global stage,’’ Brugnaro told The Associated Press, adding he hoped to meet Bezos while he was in town.

Meanwhile, a Venetian environmental research association, Corila, issued a statement saying Bezos’ Earth Fund was supporting its work with an “important donation.”

Corila, which unites university scholars and Italy’s main national research council in researching Venetian protection strategies, wouldn’t say how much Bezos was donating but said contact began in April, well before the protests started.

A gondolier tours tourists along the Grand Canal in Venice, Italy, on Wednesday, June 25, 2025, ahead of festivities in the lagoon city reportedly linked to a wedding celebration for Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)

Boats cruise along the Grand Canal in Venice, Italy, on Wednesday, June 25, 2025, ahead of festivities in the lagoon city reportedly linked to a wedding celebration for Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)

A 'No Jeff Bezos wedding' protest poster is attached on a wall in Venice, Italy, Thursday, June 12, 2025. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)

Amazon multi-billionaire founder Jeff Bezos waves as he leaves by boat a hotel in Venice, Italy, on Wednesday, June 25, 2025, ahead of festivities in the lagoon city reportedly linked to his wedding with Lauren Sanchez. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)

Amazon multi-billionaire founder Jeff Bezos, right, and Lauren Sanchez leave a hotel in Venice, Italy, on Wednesday, June 25, 2025, ahead of festivities in the lagoon city reportedly linked to their wedding. (AP Photo/Luigi Costantini)

Amazon multi-billionaire founder Jeff Bezos, right, and Lauren Sanchez arrive by boat at a hotel in Venice, Italy, on Wednesday, June 25, 2025, ahead of festivities in the lagoon city reportedly linked to their wedding. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)

Lauren Sanchez arrives by boat at an hotel in Venice, Italy, on Wednesday, June 25, 2025, ahead of festivities in the lagoon city reportedly linked to her wedding with Amazon multi-billionaire founder Jeff Bezos. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno))

Amazon multi-billionaire founder Jeff Bezos, right, and Lauren Sanchez arrive by boat at an hotel in Venice, Italy, on Wednesday, June 25, 2025, ahead of festivities in the lagoon city reportedly linked to their wedding. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno))

Jeff Bezos step father, Mike Bezos, second from right, arrives to an hotel in Venice, Italy, on Wednesday, June 25, 2025, ahead of festivities in the lagoon city reportedly linked to a wedding celebration for Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)

Tourists snap photographs of the Rialto bridge along the Grand Canal in Venice, Italy, on Wednesday, June 25, 2025, ahead of festivities in the lagoon city reportedly linked to a wedding celebration for Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)

FILE - Lauren Sanchez and Jeff Bezos arrives at the Vanity Fair Oscar Party at the Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts in Beverly Hills, Calif., March 2, 2025. (Photo by Evan Agostini/Invision/AP File)

LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Michigan Lt. Gov. Garlin Gilchrist II announced Monday he is suspending his campaign for governor and instead joining the race for secretary of state of the battleground state.

Gilchrist, a progressive Democrat from Detroit, did not cite a specific reason for the change in his video announcement, but said he is not finished being a “public servant.” His departure clears up the Democratic primary and benefits the frontrunner, Jocelyn Benson, who is the current Secretary of State, in the race to replace term-limited Gov. Gretchen Whitmer.

The secretary of state is Michigan's top election official, a highly politicized and visible role since the 2020 presidential election.

“Michigan has been ground zero in the battle for free and fair elections before, and it will be again,” Gilchrist said.

As Whitmer’s second in command and her running mate in two elections, Gilchrist struggled to match Benson’s name recognition and fundraising. He reported having around $378,000 of cash on hand as of October compared to Benson’s $2.98 million.

Benson is now set to face only Genesee County Sheriff Chris Swanson in the Democratic primary in August.

The inclusion of a well-known independent candidate has created a new problem for Democrats this year. Former Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan is avoiding costly primaries altogether by running as an independent. The Michigan Democratic Party slammed the former Democrat last week for not standing up to President Donald Trump’s second term policies.

In the Republican primary, U.S. Rep. John James, former Michigan Attorney General Mike Cox, state Senate Leader Aaric Nesbitt and former Michigan House speaker Tom Leonard are jockeying for the nomination.

In his bid to become secretary of state, Gilchrist will face four other Democrats: Barb Byrum, Ingham County clerk; Aghogho Edevbie, deputy secretary of state; Suzanna Shkreli, a former Whitmer aide and commissioner of the Michigan State Lottery; and Adam Hollier, a former state senator from Detroit.

Michigan does not hold primary elections for the secretary of state position; the nominee is chosen by precinct delegates during party conventions. The Michigan Democratic Party convention is scheduled for April 19.

State Republicans plan to hold their nominating convention March 28 and GOP figures chasing the party's nomination for secretary of state include Anthony Forlini, Macomb County Clerk, and Monica Yatooma, an Oakland County executive.

In addition to the office of the governor and secretary of state, Michigan voters will be selecting a new state attorney general and a U.S. senator in November.

FILE - Michigan Lt. Gov. Garlin Gilchrist II waits before the State of the State address, Wednesday, Jan. 24, 2024, at the state Capitol in Lansing, Mich. (AP Photo/Al Goldis, file)