People Profiles

Learn how specific individuals are influencing public policy. Each profile below is carefully curated by an InfluenceWatch contributor, and includes funding data where appropriate.

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View George Soros

George Soros

Donor, Multi-Issue Advocacy
George Soros is a Hungarian-born American investor, author, left-of-center political donor, and philanthropist. Outside of his political giving and advocacy, he is best known for…
View Steve Ballmer

Steve Ballmer

Board Member or Executive, Donor, Multi-Issue Advocacy
Steve Ballmer is the former CEO of Microsoft and a major funder of left-of-center advocacy groups. From 2016-2021, Ballmer donated over $110 million to Los Angeles organizations alone.
View Neville Roy Singham

Neville Roy Singham

Board Member or Executive, Donor
Neville Roy Singham is an American businessman and self-described socialist. He is married to Jodie Evans, co-founder of CODEPINK, a left-wing advocacy group created to…
View Peter Thiel

Peter Thiel

Board Member or Executive, Donor, Tech Policy
Peter Thiel is a technology investor and a mega-donor to Republican Party candidates. Thiel co-founded PayPal in 1998 and in 2004 was the first outside…
View Ted Turner

Ted Turner

Board Member or Executive, Donor, Energy Policy, Environmental Policy
Robert Edward "Ted" Turner III was a billionaire media proprietor, conservationist, and philanthropist best known as the founder of CNN, the first 24-hour cable news…
View Brian Acton

Brian Acton

Board Member or Executive, Donor, Abortion Policy, Tech Policy
Brian Acton is a billionaire technology entrepreneur and philanthropist. He is a co-founder of mobile messenger app WhatsApp.
View Tom Steyer

Tom Steyer

Activist, Donor, Environmental Policy
Thomas Fahr “Tom” Steyer is an American hedge-fund billionaire turned climate-change activist, and major political donor to environmental causes and Democrats advocating an environmentalist agenda…
View Fred Stanback

Fred Stanback

Donor, Multi-Issue Advocacy
Fred Stanback, Jr., is a North Carolina billionaire and a major donor to organizations that promote abortion access (such as Planned Parenthood South Atlantic), left-leaning…
View Ken Griffin

Ken Griffin

Board Member or Executive, Donor, Criminal Justice Policy
Ken Griffin is the billionaire founder of Citadel and a right-of-center political donor. In the 2022 election cycle, Griffin donated $60 million to political candidates…
View Larry Fink

Larry Fink

Board Member or Executive, Donor, Environmental Policy, Identity Politics (for race-based policy/activism)
See Also: BlackRock, Inc. (For-Profit)
View Jared Isaacman

Jared Isaacman

Board Member or Executive, Donor
Jared Isaacman is the administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) as of December 2025. He is also an American billionaire, entrepreneur, philanthropist,…
View Megan Hull

Megan Hull

Activist, Donor, Multi-Issue Advocacy
Megan Hull is a left-of-center activist and political donor who regularly contributes to Democratic candidates and left-of-center advocacy causes. Her father is Blair Hull, a billionaire…
View Elon Musk

Elon Musk

Board Member or Executive, Donor, Other, Multi-Issue Advocacy, Tech Policy
Elon Musk is a South African-born American technology entrepreneur, investor, and philanthropist best known for his role as a founder or co-founder of several high-profile…
View Chase Koch

Chase Koch

Board Member or Executive, Donor, Multi-Issue Advocacy
Chase Koch is the son of billionaire Charles Koch of Koch Industries. He is the president of Koch Disruptive Technologies and chairman of Stand Together…
View Lyna Lam

Lyna Lam

Board Member or Executive, Donor, Immigration Policy
Lyna Lam is a philanthropist based in San Francisco, California. She is the child of refugees from the Cambodian genocide perpetrated by the Khmer Rouge…
View Mark Zuckerberg

Mark Zuckerberg

Board Member or Executive, Donor, Multi-Issue Advocacy
Mark Zuckerberg is the founder, chairman, and chief executive officer of Facebook. Zuckerberg founded the company while at Harvard with classmates Andrew McCullum, Dustin Moskovitz, Chris Hughes, and…
View C. Frederick Taylor

C. Frederick Taylor

Board Member or Executive, Donor, Energy Policy, Environmental Policy
C. Frederick Taylor (Fred Taylor) is a reclusive California billionaire and one of three founders of the TGS Management hedge fund. In July 2023 the…
View James Murdoch

James Murdoch

Board Member or Executive, Donor, Environmental Policy
James Murdoch is the former chairman of 21st Century Fox and the son of media mogul Rupert Murdoch. Unlike his conservative father, James is a…
View Barbara Hostetter

Barbara Hostetter

Donor, Abortion Policy, Multi-Issue Advocacy
Barbara Hostetter is a Boston, Massachusetts-based philanthropist. She is the wife of billionaire cable television entrepreneur Amos Hostetter.
View Deborah Simon

Deborah Simon

Donor, Abortion Policy
Deborah "Debbie" Simon is the daughter of billionaire shopping mall magnate Melvin Simon. She is a philanthropist and left-of-center political donor. She is a major…

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Sunita Leeds

Sunita Leeds (sometimes referred to as Sunita Gupta Leeds) is a philanthropist based in Washington, D.C. who has been involved with numerous left-of-center advocacy groups,…

Madison Teachers, Inc. (MTI)

Madison Teachers, Inc. (MTI) is a labor union representing teachers and other educational employees of the Madison Metropolitan School District in Madison, Wisconsin. Its teachers’…

Democracy Matters Foundation (formerly Franklin Education Forum)

The Democracy Matters Foundation is an activist organization that makes grants in support of left-of-center communications and advocacy campaigns. It was known since its 2013…

D.N. Batten Foundation

The D.N. Batten Foundation contributes millions to a broad array of organizations including left-of-center environmentalist groups focusing on climate change, and other environmentalist priorities. The…