The Washington Post has lost 200,000 digital subscriptions and several editorial board members due to a veto over an endorsement.

• Over 200,000 digital subscriptions have been lost by The Washington Post following its announcement that it would not endorse a candidate in the presidential race between Kamala Harris and Donald Trump.
• Nine members of the Post's editorial board resigned after the decision was made.
• Jeff Bezos, the founder of Amazon, made the non-endorsement decision, according to the paper's own reporting, despite CEO and Publisher Will Lewis stating otherwise.

Over 200,000 digital subscriptions have been lost by The Washington Post, and three members of its editorial board have resigned following the paper's decision not to endorse a candidate in the presidential election between Kamala Harris and Donald Trump.

According to two sources with knowledge of internal matters, NPR's David Folkenflik reported Monday that the newspaper had lost about 8% of its paid circulation of 2.5 million subscribers, which includes print editions, since Friday's announcement of the non-endorsement. (Source: https://www.npr.org/2020/10/12/551155577/washington-post-loses-about-8-of-its-paid-circulation-since-fridays-announcement)

The three members of the Post's editorial board, Molly Roberts, David Hoffman, and Mili Mitra, resigned due to the controversial endorsement decision, but they remain on the paper's staff, according to public statements and the paper.

When contacted by CNBC on Monday, a Post spokesperson refused to discuss the subscription losses or editorial board resignations.

The Post's publisher and CEO, Will Lewis, has stated that he made the decision to break with tradition and not endorse a presidential candidate in the current or any future elections.

According to a Post story on Friday, four people who were briefed on the decision reported that Jeff Bezos, the owner and founder of The Post, has decided to stop issuing presidential endorsements.

The newspaper has denied that claim.

According to the newspaper's own reporting, the Post's editorial page had planned to endorse Vice President Harris, the Democratic nominee.

In a letter to Post Opinions Editor David Shipley, Roberts announced her resignation from the editorial board and stated, "I oppose silence in the face of dictatorship. This is a matter of principle, not location."

Jeff Bezos, not the editorial board, made the decision not to endorse the election, as stated by Roberts in a post online.

"I am stepping down from The Post editorial board because the need to support Kamala Harris over Donald Trump is as clear as it gets. Unfortunately, our silence is exactly what Donald Trump desires: for the media and us to remain silent."

On Saturday, The Washington Post owner's role and the decision not to publish a presidential endorsement were inaccurately reported, according to Lewis.

"As Publisher, I do not believe in presidential endorsements. We are an independent newspaper and should support our readers' ability to make up their own minds," Lewis said. "He was not sent, did not read and did not opine on any draft."