Trump Isn't America's Richest Politician Anymore. Illinois' New Governor J.B. Pritzker Is.

Forbes reports:

>Hyatt heir and longtime Democratic donor J.B. Pritzker gave a record $171.5 million of his own money to his campaign to become Illinois’ new governor. And just a little over an hour after the polls closed, Pritzker found out it was money well spent. According to multiple news outlets, Pritzker beat out incumbent Republican governor Bruce Rauner, winning by an estimated 31% margin as of 9:25 p.m. Eastern Time.

Once Pritzker assumes office, he will be the richest sitting politician in the country, worth an estimated $3.2 billion, surpassing President Trump, who currently holds that title with a net worth of $3.1 billion.

“I know I grew up lucky in life, with a good family and the resources to get a great education and to pursue my dreams,” Pritzker said when he announced his candidacy in April 2017. The Illinois resident’s fortune comes from the Hyatt Hotel chain, which was founded by his uncle Jay in 1957 and run by his father, Donald. Nevertheless, Pritzker didn’t follow in his father’s footsteps. He graduated from Northwestern Law in 1993. Three years later, he and his brother Anthony founded the private equity firm Pritzker Group. The company, from which Pritzker stepped away, owns and runs industrial firms and has a stake in SpaceX, Elon Musk’s rocket firm.

During a record-breaking election in money terms (federal candidates raised an estimated record of $5.2 billion), Pritzker stood out for setting a new record in self-financing: Forbes estimates he has given the largest amount of his own money to his campaign in U.S. history—$171.5 million (the campaign spent a total of $135.9 million on the election). Rauner, who was an early partner in a Chicago-based private equity firm, spent $57.8 million on his own reelection campaign in 2015 and 2016. Together, their personal spending during this election cycle almost hit $230 million.

A top presidential contender for the Democrat party.