Connie Ballmer is an American philanthropist. She is the wife of former Microsoft CEO and billionaire Steve Ballmer. The Ballmers are major donors to Democratic politicians and left-progressive causes.

Philanthropy

In 2015, Connie and Steve Ballmer created the Ballmer Group. The Ballmer Group is a philanthropic fund that supports organizations that provide social services for left-progressive racial interest and Black empowerment groups. ¹

Connie and Steve Ballmer were described by Inside Philanthropy as one of the 100 most powerful people in philanthropy. ² Connie Ballmer tends to fund local organizations. From the time Ballmer moved to Los Angeles in 2016 through August 2021, the Ballmers were reported to have given over $110 million to organizations in the Los Angeles area. ³

The Ballmer Group was created to fund progressive-left organizations that provide social services for Black people in response to alleged systemic racism. Ballmer has stated that her motivation for providing these grants is because she believes racial inequities at all levels are a result of all “public systems” being racist and for that reason reparations are necessary. Ballmer also funds left-of-center organizations that advocate for ending alleged racism in public systems and establishing critical race theory-aligned racial “equity.” ⁴

Political Activity

In July 2021, Connie Ballmer made a $1 million donation to the campaign of Gov. Gavin Newsom (D-CA) to avoid a gubernatorial recall. Ballmer’s donation was the campaign’s second largest at the time she made it. ⁵

In July 2020, Ballmer, alongside her husband Steve, made a $7 million donation to Everytown for Gun Safety, a lobbying group that supports gun control. ⁶

1. Davies, Megan. “Black Lives Matter. Always.” Ballmer Group. September 18, 2020. https://www.ballmergroup.org/news/black-lives-matter.
2. IP Staff. “The inside Philanthropy Power List.” Inside Philanthropy. July 29, 2021. https://www.insidephilanthropy.com/home/2021/7/21/the-inside-philanthropy-power-list.
3. Rojc, Philip. “How the Ballmer Group Became One Of L.A.’s Most IMPORTANT FUNDERS.” Inside Philanthropy. December 17, 2019. https://www.insidephilanthropy.com/home/2019/12/5/how-the-ballmer-group-became-one-of-las-most-important-funders.
4. Davies, Megan. “Black Lives Matter. Always.” Ballmer Group. September 18, 2020. https://www.ballmergroup.org/news/black-lives-matter.
5. Thomson, Grady. “Washington State Resident Gives $1 Million to Fight Recall.” Capitol Weekly, August 13, 2021. https://capitolweekly.net/washington-state-resident-gives-1-million-to-fight-recall/.
6. Bishop, Todd. “Steve and Connie BALLMER Give $7M to National Gun Control GROUP Co-Founded by Michael Bloomberg.” GeekWire, July 16, 2020. https://www.geekwire.com/2020/steve-connie-ballmer-give-7m-national-gun-control-group-co-founded-michael-bloomberg/.