WASH.
Each dot represents
a family of donors.
Mont.
Me.
N.D.
Joe and Marlene Ricketts, owners of the Chicago Cubs, gave $5 million to Scott Walker’s organization.
Minn.
Vt.
Ore.
N.H.
Boston
New
York
Wis.
Idaho
Detroit
Mass.
S.D.
Conn.
Mich.
Wyo.
New York
area
N.J.
Iowa
Pa.
Chicago
Nev.
Philadelphia
Ohio
Neb.
MD.
Ind.
San Francisco
area
Fort Collins
Ill.
Utah
Robert Mercer, hedge-fund magnate, contributed $11 million to the super PAC backing Ted Cruz.
Columbus
Colo.
W. Va.
Kan.
St. Louis
Va.
The Wilks family, fracking-business billionaires, donated $15 million in support of Ted Cruz.
Mo.
KY.
CaliF.
Branson
N.C.
Tenn.
Ariz.
Okla.
Ark.
N.M.
Los Angeles
area
S.C.
Little Rock
Atlanta
Dallas
Ala.
Ga.
Miss.
La.
Midland
Texas
Baton Rouge
Hong
Kong
Fla.
Palm Beach area
San Antonio
Houston
Puerto
Rico
Miami
Each dot represents
a family of donors.
WASH.
Me.
N.D.
Mont.
Minn.
Ore.
New
York
Boston
Wis.
Idaho
S.D.
Detroit
Wyo.
Nev.
Pa.
Chicago
Ohio
Neb.
New
York
area
San Francisco
area
Ind.
Ill.
Columbus
Colo.
Mo.
Utah
Kan.
Va.
KY.
St. Louis
CaliF.
N.C.
Ariz.
Tenn.
Okla.
Ark.
S.C.
Los Angeles
area
N.M.
Dallas
Little Rock
Atlanta
Ala.
Miss.
Ga.
La.
Palm
Beach
area
Texas
Fla.
Hong
Kong
San Antonio
Houston
Puerto
Rico
Miami
Each dot represents
a family of donors.
San
Francisco
New
York
Los
Angeles
Palm
Beach
Houston
Puerto Rico and
Hong Kong
A look at some of the business, personal and ideological ties that bind megadonors in the 2016 presidential campaign.
The Frackers
The great American energy boom of the last decade has produced a wave of new billionaires and multimillionaires. Now they are throwing tens of millions of dollars into the presidential campaign, with the biggest checks going almost exclusively to Republicans and their “super PACs.” The top donors include Trevor Rees-Jones, who left a law practice in Dallas and turned $4,000 in savings into an energy empire as the head of Chief Oil and Gas; Dan and Farris Wilks, abortion opponents whose trucking and equipment business struck gold in the fracking boom; and Karen Buchwald Wright, the head of Ariel Corporation, an Ohio manufacturer of gas compressors.
Old Oil
Established Texas oil families are deeply involved in the campaign, too. Descendants of the late gambler and oil speculator H.L. Hunt – once thought to be the richest man in America – account for at least $2.3 million in donations in this presidential campaign. Mr. Hunt’s fortune, feuds and multiple marriages are the stuff of legend: In the late 1970s, two of his sons reputedly tried to corner the silver market, and some say the Hunts inspired the classic television series “Dallas.” At least three of his descendants have followed his path in Republican politics in the 2016 campaign. Among them is Ray Lee Hunt, the sole surviving Hunt heir with enough wealth to make the Forbes list of billionaires. (Mr. Hunt is No. 92 in the United States.) The family business, Hunt Oil, remains among the largest privately held oil companies in the country. Mr. Hunt and his wife have put more than $2 million behind Mr. Bush.
Hedge Fund Partners, Political Opposites
They may disagree on politics, but they earned fortunes together. The hedge fund investor George Soros, who earned $1 billion in a bet against the British pound in 1992, is a prominent liberal donor and philanthropist who has given $1 million to a super PAC backing Hillary Rodham Clinton. His partner on that trade was Stanley F. Druckenmiller, who would become a prominent hedge fund manager in his own right, and is now close to Gov. Chris Christie of New Jersey, a Republican. Mr. Druckenmiller is a strong advocate of reduced spending on entitlement programs, which he has called “current seniors stealing from future seniors.” He has put a total of more than $300,000 behind Mr. Christie, Jeb Bush and Gov. John R. Kasich of Ohio.
Mystery Money
Some of the largest donations came from donors whose backgrounds and occupations were difficult to determine from public records. A man named Chen Shu Te gave $500,000 to Right to Rise USA, a super PAC backing Mr. Bush, which told the Federal Election Commission that Mr. Chen lives in Hong Kong. But public records reveal almost nothing about him, or even if he is an American citizen. (Green card holders may contribute, but other foreign nationals may not.) Hundreds of thousands of dollars in other contributions came from limited liability corporations whose ownership is unclear. Among them is TH Holdings L.L.C., which shares a New York City office suite with Neuberger Berman, an investment management firm headed by a cousin of Mr. Bush’s. More than a dozen of the firm’s other employees or executives have given to Mr. Bush’s campaign or the super PAC, but under their own names.
Dallas Royalty
The Preston Hollow neighborhood, home to former President George W. Bush and other leading Dallas Republicans, accounts for nearly $13 million of the money flowing to the presidential candidates and their super PACs. Much of it went to help Jeb Bush, who has leveraged his family and political connections in both Florida, where he was governor, and Texas, where his brother George held the same office. But some of the neighborhood’s biggest donors backed Gov. Rick Perry of Texas, who has since dropped out of the race. The Dallas pipeline owner Kelcy Warren gave a super PAC supporting Mr. Perry’s committee $6 million, while another neighbor, Darwin Deason, pitched in $5 million.
The Moneyed Left
Many of the biggest donors to Mrs. Clinton’s super PAC have ties to the Democracy Alliance, a club that has strived to build a “progressive infrastructure” of left-leaning think tanks, activist groups and grassroots organizations. They include Mr. Soros, a founding member of the alliance; a fellow hedge fund investor, S. Donald Sussman; and Stephen M. Silberstein, a San Francisco-area programmer who made his fortune developing library computer systems. Mrs. Clinton is also backed by Amy Goldman Fowler, a philanthropist and heiress to a New York real estate fortune, and Patricia A. Stryker, one member of an influential group of Colorado progressive donors known as “the Gang of Four.”
The Top Early Donors in the Presidential Race
The Wilks family of Texas — brothers Farris and Dan and their spouses, Jo Ann and Staci — earned billions in the fracking boom.
Robert Mercer, a Wall Street hedge fund magnate, and his daughter, Rebekah Mercer.
Co-founder of a private equity firm and son of Representative Randy Neugebauer, Republican of Texas.
Dallas billionaire and chief executive of an energy company.
Joe Ricketts founded the online brokerage TD Ameritrade and is the patriarch of the family that owns the Chicago Cubs.
Darwin Deason is a Dallas-based billionaire who made his fortune by selling a data processing company to Xerox.
Co-founder of a Wisconsin-based roofing company.
Billionaire auto dealer in Florida, and a longtime patron of Marco Rubio.
Miguel "Mike" Fernandez built a series of health care services firms and now runs a private equity company.
Chief executive of the agribusiness giant Mountaire.
Former chief executive of Oracle Corporation.
Owners of a Wisconsin packaging supply company, Mr. Uihlein also is descended from a founder of the Joseph Schlitz Brewing Co.
Health care executive and owner of Besilu stables.
Heirs to the late oil billionaire H. L. Hunt.
Executive of the Susquehanna International Group, an investment company.
Mr. Kinder is executive chairman of a Houston pipeline company; Mrs. Kinder is president of the Kinder Foundation
Family of Francis Rooney, a longtime supporter of the Bush family and owner of Manhattan Construction Group.
The billionaire media investor Haim Saban and his wife, Cheryl, a philanthropist.
Family of Robert C. McNair, owner of the Houston Texans in the N.F.L.
Hushang Ansary, a Houston businessman and former Iranian ambassador to the United States, and his wife, Shahla.
The oil billionaire Trevor D. Rees-Jones and his wife, Jan.
The hedge fund billionaire Steven A. Cohen and his wife, Alexandra.
Isaac Perlmutter is chief executive of Marvel Entertainment.
Presidential candidate, second-generation real estate developer and entertainer.
A Russian-born American citizen who is the richest man in Britain, according to Forbes.
A. Jerrold Perenchio, former chairman of Univision, and his wife, Margaret.
Co-founder of Home Depot.
Founding partner of SPO Partners, an investment firm.
Wife of Charles R. Schwab, the brokerage company founder.
Technology entrepreneur and investor.
Karen Buchwald Wright, chief executive of an Ohio natural gas-compressor manufacturing company, and her husband, Tom Rastin.
Private equity and leveraged-buyout pioneer.
Grandson of the founder of Superior Oil and a longtime Bush family fund-raiser.
Nevada-based businessman and technology entrepreneur.
Equity portfolio manager.
Founder of Tiger Management, a hedge fund.
Financier and part-owner of the San Francisco Giants baseball franchise.
Family of George Soros, billionaire philanthropist and hedge fund investor.
President of Louisiana shipping company.
Mr. Robo gave $2,700; NextEra Energy, where he is chairman and chief executive, made corporate contributions of more than $1 million.
Family of Jeffrey Katzenberg, chief executive of DreamWorks Animation.
Silicon Valley venture capitalist.
Reebok founder and owner of a Nevada ranch.
Woody Johnson, owner of the New York Jets, and his mother, Betty.
Retired Florida developer who served as ambassador to Portugal under President George W. Bush.
Chairman of a California private equity firm.
The film director J.J. Abrams and his wife, Katie McGrath.
Chairman and chief executive of L Brands (formerly Limited).
Co-founder of a company that develops data systems for libraries.
Film director and co-principal of DreamWorks.
Founder, with his late wife, Marion, of Golden West Financial, the giant California savings and loan bought by the Wachovia Corporation in 2006.
Billionaire businessman and art collector.
Founder of a home medical equipment company.
Founder of the hedge fund Moore Capital Management.
Founder of Paloma Partners, a hedge fund in Greenwich, Conn.
President of the real estate company Schottenstein Management.
Billionaire coal mogul.
The Republican candidate Jeb Bush and family, including two ex-presidents, his father, George, and his brother George W.
Computer scientist and hedge fund founder.
Founder of Copart, a vehicle auction website.
Chairman and chief executive of Sallyport Investments; former chief executive of El Paso Corp.
Duke Buchan III, founder of the hedge fund Hunter Global Investors, and his wife, Hannah.
Heir to medical supply company fortune.
Founder of Quicken Loans.
The horse racing magnate Richard L. Duchossois and his children.
Venture capital executives.
Financial advisory executive.
Kenny A. Troutt, founder of a long-distance phone company, and his wife, Lisa.
Chicago investor and former Goldman Sachs executive.
Marc Stern is chairman of the TCW Group, a Los Angeles-based asset management firm.
Family of James H. Simons, founder of the hedge fund Renaissance Technologies.
Founder of Houston investment firm.
President and chief executive of an oil barge company.
Owners of Jackson Healthcare LLC.
Family that owns Herschend Family Entertainment, a theme park operator.
Principal owners of the N.B.A.'s San Antonio Spurs.
Doug Leone is partner in the venture capital firm Sequoia Capital.
Founder of Bridger Management, a hedge fund.
Hedge fund manager and activist investor.
Chief executive of Silver Eagle Distributors.
Pakistan-born founder of a West Texas energy company.
Partner at Greylock, a venture capital firm.
Former chairman and chief executive at the Interpublic Group of Companies.
Former chief executive of the insurance broker Willis Group Holdings.
An early pioneer of index funds, now retired and active in Missouri politics.
Retired chairman and chief executive of Rock-Tenn Company, a manufacturer of consumer packaging.
Chairman and chief executive of a steel company.
Chairman of the cruise operator Carnival Corporation and owner of pro basketball's Miami Heat.
Co-founder of Private Capital Management.
Senior partner at the Silicon Valley venture capital firm Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers.
Co-founder of Compuware.
Founder of Cardinal Health.
A retiree living in Hong Kong -- but public records reveal little else about him.
John D. Goldman, a San Francisco insurance executive, is a son of the late philanthropist Richard N. Goldman.
Founders of Harbour Group, a St. Louis-based investment firm, and longtime Bush family allies.
Owner of Peace River Citrus Products.
Founder of 5-hour Energy drinks.
Family of Itzhak Ezratti, president of G.L. Homes of Florida.
Heirs to the Motorola fortune.
Candidate for the Democratic presidential nomination.
Family behind the grocery retailing chain Publix Super Markets.
Walter W. Buckley, founder of a Bethlehem, Pa., investment management firm, and his wife, Marjorie.
Venture capital executive.
Family behind Kojaian Management Corp., a real estate investment firm based in Michigan.
Partner for Aqueduct Capital Group and former George W. Bush fund-raiser.
Owners of a dental benefits company.
Florida sugar barons, led by four brothers born in Cuba.
Investor and hedge fund manager.
Florida-based founder of a Massachusetts-based private equity firm.
Chairman of Cinemark, a chain of movie theaters.
Media investors.
Hedge fund manager ranked as the richest man in Illinois.
Heirs to Kohler manufacturing fortune.
Chairman of Cushman & Wakefield, a commercial real estate firm.
Detroit businessman and owner of the Ambassador International Bridge, the only privately-owned border crossing between the U.S. and Canada.
President and chairman of the board of the P.G.A. Tour.
Candidate for the Democratic presidential nomination.
Washington lawyer and conservative activist.
Former professional wrestling executive, who spent close to $100 million on two failed Senate bids in Connecticut.
Chairman of asset management firm.
Former Goldman Sachs banker.
Children of the late McHenry Tichenor Sr., a media mogul and pioneer of Spanish-language radio.
Co-founder of a private equity firm that focuses on the oil and gas industry.
Chief executive of tax services firm.
Owners of Roch Capital, a Pennsylvania-based investment firm.
Insurance executive.
Executive at Kohlberg Kravis Roberts, the New York-based private equity firm.
Oil executive.
Financial services executive.
Founder of Falcon Cable.
Chairman and chief executive of Epoch Residential, a luxury construction company.
Arkansas commodity executive.
Head of a petroleum distributor.
Co-founded an investment firm.
The daughter of the late Sol Goldman, a wealthy New York real estate investor, Ms. Goldman has written three books about growing heirloom fruits and vegetables.
Beverly Hills car dealer.
Founder of oil and natural gas exploration and production company.
Chairman emeritus of Dodge & Cox.
Hedge fund founder.
Founder of a New York hedge fund and longtime backer of Rand Paul.
Private equity investor.
Investment banker who served as deputy secretary of Treasury during the Clinton administration.
Hedge fund founder.
A founder of Home Depot and longtime supporter of Chris Christie.
One of the highest-earning hedge fund founders in the country, specializing in distressed assets.
Auto racing enthusiast and founder of W&T; Offshore, and independent oil and natural gas company.
Founder of Cintas Corp.
Former chief executive of a mail-order pharmacy company.
Owners of Crown Equipment Corp.
Founder and chairman of Penske Corp.
Owners of Miller & Long Real Estate in Bethesda, Md.
Investor.
Chairman and chief executive of WellMed Medical Management.
Former owners of The Columbus Dispatch.
Founder of Performance Contractors.
New Jersey hospital owners.
Republican activist and chief executive of an Ohio coal mining company.
Co-founder of PCS Wireless.