Steve Ballmer is the former CEO of Microsoft and a major funder of progressive-left groups. ¹ From 2016-2021, Ballmer donated over $110 million to Los Angeles organizations alone. ²

After retiring from Microsoft, Steve Ballmer and his wife Connie created the Ballmer Group, a philanthropic fund designed to fund progressive-left identity politics groups. Ballmer states that his philanthropic spending is designed to create economic opportunities for Black people so that they can overcome alleged systemic racism in America. ³

Career

Steve Balmer grew up in Detroit, Michigan, and graduated from Harvard with a bachelor’s degree in mathematics and economics. While at Harvard, he befriended Bill Gates, which led to him becoming the 24^th employee at Microsoft. In 1998, Balmer become president of Microsoft, and in 2000, he became the CEO. In 2014, Balmer stepped down as CEO of Microsoft. ⁴

Three months after retiring from Microsoft, Steve Balmer purchased the Los Angeles Clippers NBA team from the Donald Sterling Family Trust for $2 billion. ⁵

In 2015, Steve and Connie Ballmer created the Ballmer Group. The Ballmer Group is a philanthropic fund that funds organizations that provide social services for left-wing racial advocacy and Black empowerment groups. ⁶

Philanthropy

Steve Ballmer, alongside his wife Connie, was described by Inside Philanthropy as one of the 100 most powerful people in philanthropy. ⁷ Steve Ballmer tends to fund local organizations. From the time Ballmer moved to Los Angeles in 2016 to August of 2021, he was reported to have given over $110 million to organizations in the Los Angeles area. ⁸

The Ballmer Group provides grants to progressive-left organizations that fund social services for Black people to provide economic opportunity in response to alleged systemic racism. Ballmer states that his motivation for providing these grants is because he 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 racial equity as defined by critical race theory and similar ideologies. ⁹

Some of the Ballmer Funds’ grantees include: ¹⁰

• Alliance for Safety and Justice Action Fund
• Color of Change
• Equal Justice Initiative
• PolicyLink
• The Bail Project
• The Obama Foundation

USAFacts

In 2016, Steve Ballmer created USAFacts, a nonprofit organization that researches the United States population and spending. USAFacts studies government spending data and reports on it in a way that models how companies listed on stock exchanges are required by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to report their finances and activity. ¹¹

Political Donations

Steve Ballmer has historically given to both Republican and Democratic candidates but has spent vastly more money on left-of-center campaigns. In 2020, Ballmer gave $3 million to No on Prop 25, a progressive-left ballot measure committee that advocated for defunding law enforcement and reducing the number of people who are incarcerated during pre-trial. In 2018, he gave $600,000 to Safe Schools Safe Communities, a campaign group for gun control in Washington state. He gave $500,000 to Washington Alliance for Gun Responsibility, another gun control group, during both the 2014 and 2016 election cycle. ¹²

1. IP Staff. “The inside Philanthropy Power List.” Inside Philanthropy. Inside Philanthropy, July 29, 2021. https://www.insidephilanthropy.com/home/2021/7/21/the-inside-philanthropy-power-list.
2. Rojc, Philip. “How the Ballmer Group Became One Of L.A.’s Most IMPORTANT FUNDERS.” Inside Philanthropy. Inside Philanthropy, December 17, 2019. https://www.insidephilanthropy.com/home/2019/12/5/how-the-ballmer-group-became-one-of-las-most-important-funders.
3. Davies, Megan. “Black Lives Matter. Always.” Ballmer Group. Ballmer Group, September 18, 2020. https://www.ballmergroup.org/news/black-lives-matter.
4. “Steve Ballmer Fast Facts.” CNN. Cable News Network, March 14, 2021. https://www.cnn.com/2013/04/08/us/steve-ballmer-fast-facts/.
5. “Steve Ballmer Fast Facts.” CNN. Cable News Network, March 14, 2021. https://www.cnn.com/2013/04/08/us/steve-ballmer-fast-facts/.
6. Davies, Megan. “Black Lives Matter. Always.” Ballmer Group. Ballmer Group, September 18, 2020. https://www.ballmergroup.org/news/black-lives-matter.
7. IP Staff. “The inside Philanthropy Power List.” Inside Philanthropy. Inside Philanthropy, July 29, 2021. https://www.insidephilanthropy.com/home/2021/7/21/the-inside-philanthropy-power-list.
8. Rojc, Philip. “How the Ballmer Group Became One Of L.A.’s Most IMPORTANT FUNDERS.” Inside Philanthropy. Inside Philanthropy, December 17, 2019. https://www.insidephilanthropy.com/home/2019/12/5/how-the-ballmer-group-became-one-of-las-most-important-funders.
9. Davies, Megan. “Black Lives Matter. Always.” Ballmer Group. Ballmer Group, September 18, 2020. https://www.ballmergroup.org/news/black-lives-matter.
10. “Grantees Supporting Racial Equity in Predominantly Black Communities.” Ballmer Group. Accessed August 8, 2021. https://www.ballmergroup.org/black-lives-matter.
11. “Steve Ballmer.” Ballmer Group. Accessed August 8, 2021. https://www.ballmergroup.org/steve-ballmer
12. “Search Opensecrets.org.” OpenSecrets. Accessed August 8, 2021. https://www.opensecrets.org/search?q=steven+ballmer&type=donors