Fresh off his departure from the race for the Democratic presidential nomination, former New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg has poured $2 million into efforts to boost turnout by African-American voters in eight key states, an indication of his intention to continue bankrolling Democratic causes ahead of November's elections.

"Voter suppression efforts across the country have been a barely disguised effort to keep Black Americans and other Democratic-leaning voters from the polls," Bloomberg said in a statement on Monday. "I've always believed we need to make it easier for all citizens to register and vote, not harder."

The $2 million donation, as first reported by The Washington Post, will go to the group Collective Future. A Bloomberg aide said the former mayor signed off on the donation before he exited the race following Super Tuesday last week, and the funds were transferred to the group on Friday. The donation has been in the works for six weeks, the aide said.