Endeavor Group Holdings is a major talent agency based in Beverly Hills, California. It was formed in 2007 by a merger of Endeavor, co-founded by Ari Emanuel, and the William Morris Agency. After a failed initial public offering in 2019, Endeavor made an initial public offering in 2021. ¹

Endeavor’s leadership, staff, and political activities are aligned with the Democratic Party. Most notably, CEO Ari Emanuel is the brother of Democratic politician Rahm Emanuel, a former U.S. Representative from Illinois, White House Chief of Staff under President Barack Obama (D), and mayor of Chicago.

Associated Groups

In 2009, Endeavor established the Endeavor Foundation, a grantmaking non-profit primarily focused on funding education and scholarships. ²

In 2017, Endeavor formed its own PAC, Endeavor Action. Co-CEOs Ari Emanuel and Patrick Whitesell announced to their staff that the initiative was launched in response to the election of President Donald Trump (R). In addition to making political donations through Endeavor Action, Endeavor declared it would match employee donations and connect clients to political candidates. ³

In the 2018, 2020, and 2022 election cycles, Endeavor Action donated over $156,000, over $102,000, and almost $46,000 respectively. All donations went to Democratic candidates and PACs. ⁴

Endeavor Action initially had more ambitious money-raising and spending goals, but in 2019, the PAC curtailed its goals in compliance with demands from End Citizens United to curtail corporate donations to political campaigns. Three presidential candidates — U.S. Senators Kamala Harris (D-CA) and Cory Booker (D-NJ) and U.S. Representative Beto O’Rourke (D-TX) — returned contributions from Endeavor Action. ⁵

Fundraisers

During the 2020 Democratic presidential primaries, Endeavor’s office hosted fundraisers for then-Mayor Pete Buttigieg (D-South Bend), then-U.S. Representative Beto O’Rourke (D-TX), U.S. Senator Michael Bennet (D-CO), and Andrew Yang (D). ⁶

Leadership

Ari Emanuel

Endeavor co-founder and CEO Ari Emanuel is a talent agent and businessman who has been considered one of the most powerful men in Hollywood. His companies have represented Oprah Winfrey, Dwayne Johnson, Mark Wahlberg, and many other famous actors. Emanuel is known for his erratic behavior and charisma, with some describing him as having a “cult of personality.” Emanuel served as the inspiration for the character, Ari Gold, on HBO’s “Entourage.” ⁷

Ari’s brother, Rahm Emanuel, is a well-known Democratic politician and operative. Rahm has served as a U.S. Representative, mayor of Chicago, White House Chief of Staff under President Barack Obama (D), chair of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, and U.S. Ambassador to Japan under President Joe Biden (D). ⁸

Though Ari Emanuel’s political activity is less well-known than his brother’s, Ari is a prominent Democratic donor and supporter. Since 1996, Emanuel has donated $1,437,123 almost exclusively to Democratic candidates and PACs. ⁹ In 2004, Ari tried to force Sony to distribute copies of Michael Moore’s “Fahrenheit 9/11” for free in Ohio to persuade voters to support then-Democratic presidential candidate Sen. John Kerry (D-MA). ¹⁰

In 2009, after the election of President Obama and the Rahm’s appointment as an advisor, Ari Emanuel was appointed to the president’s task force on the ongoing economic crisis. ¹¹

Emanuel has close ties to the governments of Abu Dhabi (particularly Khaldoon Al Mubarak, the head of the state’s sovereign wealth fund) and Saudi Arabia. Endeavor partnered with Abu Dhabi to relocate the Ultimate Fighting Championship during the COVID-19 pandemic. Emanuel met with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman shortly after his ascension to power in 2017. ¹²

Patrick Whitesell

Endeavor co-founder and chairman Patrick Whitesell is also a Democratic donor. Since 1996, Whitesell has donated $593,054, almost exclusively to Democratic candidates and organizations. ¹³

FTX Investment

Bankruptcy disclosures revealed that Endeavor owned 38,000 shares of FTX, the cryptocurrency exchange founded by Sam Bankman-Fried that collapsed amid allegations of widespread fraud. ¹⁴

1. Bruck, Connie. “Ari Emanuel Takes On The World.” The New Yorker. April 19, 2021. Accessed February 9, 2023. https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2021/04/26/ari-emanuel-takes-on-the-world.
2. “Our Story.” Endeavor. Accessed February 9, 2023. https://www.endeavorco.com/story/.
3. Rainey, James. “WME-ING Forming Political Action Committee for Donald Trump Era (EXCLUSIVE).” Variety. February 8, 2017. Accessed February 9, 2023. https://variety.com/2017/biz/news/ari-emanuel-wme-trump-political-action-committee-1201981545/.
4. “PAC Profile: Endeavor.” Open Secrets. Accessed February 9, 2023. https://www.opensecrets.org/party-totals-section.
5. Maddaus, Gene. “Endeavor PAC Goes Quiet as Candidates Reject Corporate Cash.” Variety. November 12, 2019. Accessed February 9, 2023. https://variety.com/2019/politics/news/endeavor-pac-action-quiet-returned-contributions-1203397045/.
6. Maddaus, Gene. “Endeavor PAC Goes Quiet as Candidates Reject Corporate Cash.” Variety. November 12, 2019. Accessed February 9, 2023. https://variety.com/2019/politics/news/endeavor-pac-action-quiet-returned-contributions-1203397045/.
7. Bruck, Connie. “Ari Emanuel Takes On The World.” The New Yorker. April 19, 2021. Accessed February 9, 2023. https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2021/04/26/ari-emanuel-takes-on-the-world.
8. Bruck, Connie. “Ari Emanuel Takes On The World.” The New Yorker. April 19, 2021. Accessed February 9, 2023. https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2021/04/26/ari-emanuel-takes-on-the-world.
9. “Federal Election Commission Search: Ari Emanuel.” Federal Election Commission. Accessed February 9, 2023. https://www.fec.gov/data/receipts/individual-contributions/?contributor_name=ari+emanuel.
10. Bruck, Connie. “Ari Emanuel Takes On The World.” The New Yorker. April 19, 2021. Accessed February 9, 2023. https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2021/04/26/ari-emanuel-takes-on-the-world.
11. Bruck, Connie. “Ari Emanuel Takes On The World.” The New Yorker. April 19, 2021. Accessed February 9, 2023. https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2021/04/26/ari-emanuel-takes-on-the-world.
12. Bruck, Connie. “Ari Emanuel Takes On The World.” The New Yorker. April 19, 2021. Accessed February 9, 2023. https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2021/04/26/ari-emanuel-takes-on-the-world.
13. “Federal Election Commission Search: Patrick Whitesell.” Federal Election Commission. Accessed February 9, 2023. https://www.fec.gov/data/receipts/individual-contributions/?contributor_name=patrick+whitesell.
14. Fang, Lee; Klippenstein, Ken; Boguslaw, Daniel. “New FTX Filing Pulls Back The Curtain On Sam Bankman-Fried’s Massive Influence Peddling Operation.” The Intercept. January 30, 2023. Accessed February 9, 2023. https://theintercept.com/2023/01/30/ftx-sam-bankman-fried-lobbying-pr/.