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More than 100 federal election candidates in 2020 received financial support from members of the Harvard Corporation, the university’s highest governing body, which includes some of the country’s top financial executives, academics and corporate lawyers.
Almost none of these candidates was Republican.
Members of the 13-person body donated at least $ 1,160,263 to federal candidates and political action committees in the two years leading up to the 2020 election, according to an analysis of data from the Federal Election Commission led by The Crimson.
The Harvard Corporation, officially known as the President and Fellows of Harvard College, is Harvard’s most powerful entity, wielding influence over the direction and resources of the university and influencing nearly all of the most important decisions. . Chartered in 1650, it is one of the school’s two governing boards, with the Harvard Board of Overseers elected by alumni.
Members of society donated more than $ 899,000 to Democratic candidates running for federal election between the 2018 and 2020 elections, according to FEC data, compared to approximately $ 6,600 to Republicans.
The Crimson reviewed the FEC records for each member of the Society, cross-checking their names with their major employers. The FEC database does not use a universal coding system to track donor data, which means that some members of the Society may have donated more under other names or employers. FEC data showed no contributions made under billionaire David M. Rubenstein’s name and employer, the Carlyle Group.
According to The Crimson’s analysis, former US Secretary of Commerce Penny S. Pritzker ’81 emerged as the most generous benefactor, contributing over $ 861,000, mostly to Democratic candidates for the Senate and House of States- United.
Pritzker, a member of one of America’s richest families, has a net worth of around $ 3.1 billion, according to Forbes, making him the 368th richest person in the country. She donated $ 100 million to Harvard last month to support the construction of a new building for the economic department. His brother, JB Pritzker, is governor of Illinois.
She has long been a prolific political donor, having paid Democrats at least $ 1.5 million between 1990 and 2019, according to a Purple Analysis 2019.
Attorney Theodore V. “Ted” Wells Jr. and Harvard Treasurer Paul J. Finnegan ’75 both contributed to the Republican candidates, supporting the US Senate campaigns in Alaska and Maine, respectively. Everyone also supported the Democrats.
Society members collectively donated to at least 18 PACs leading up to the 2020 election, totaling over $ 243,000.
University President Lawrence S. Bacow has not made any political donations to federal candidates since started in 2018, according to FEC data. Before arriving at Massachusetts Hall, Bacow donated to a handful of Democratic candidates, including former presidential candidates Hillary Clinton, John F. Kerry and Michael S. Dukakis.
William F. Lee ’72, who was a senior fellow of the Harvard Corporation since 2013, donated over $ 47,000 to Democratic candidates ahead of the 2020 election. Lee, who is a partner at law firm WilmerHale, was first elected to the Society in 2010.
University spokesman Jonathan L. Swain declined to comment.
– Editor Jasper G. Goodman can be contacted at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @Jasper_Goodman.
—Editor Kelsey J. Griffin can be contacted at [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter @kelseyjgriffin.
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