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Charles Koch
| Charles Koch | |
 | |
| Basic facts | |
| Organization: | Koch Industries |
| Role: | Chairman and CEO |
| Location: | Wichita, Kansas |
| Affiliation: | Republican |
| Education: | Massachusetts Institute of Technology (B.A., 1957) Massachusetts Institute of Technology (M.A., 1958 and 1959) |
| Website: | Official website |
Charles Koch is an American entrepreneur and the CEO and chairman of Koch Industries, a multi-industry conglomerate based in Wichita, Kansas. Koch also serves as the board director of Georgia-Pacific and Invista, a special materials manufacturer. He is the older brother of David Koch, who died on August 23, 2019.[1]
Career
After graduating from MIT with a master's degree, Charles Koch began working at Arthur D. Little, Inc. In 1961, Koch joined Koch Engineering Company, Inc. and worked there from 1961 to 1963. In 1963, he became president.[2]
Koch became chairman and CEO of Koch Industries, Inc., in 1967.[3] Koch became director of Intrust Financial Corporation in 1982. Throughout the years, Koch has expanded Koch Industries through the acquisition of other companies such as Great Northern Oil Company, a joint acquisition of Chrysler Realty in 1979, Sun Oil refinery in 1981, C. Reiss Coal Company in 1986, and the Brown Fintube Company in 1990, among many others.[3]
Work and activities
Koch and his brother became active in political giving in the 1980s. Koch founded Stand Together (formerly Koch Network), a group that describes itself as "a philanthropic community that helps America’s boldest changemakers tackle the root causes of our country’s biggest problems, from education to the economy, broken communities, and toxic division, among dozens of other pressing issues. We provide our partners with access to resources including funding, a unique network of peers, and a playbook for applying proven principles to transform lives and society."[4]
In 2004, the Koch founded Americans for Prosperity, a 501(c)(4) political advocacy group with a national headquarters and state branches.[5] According to The Guardian, in 2023, $130 million of AFP's $168 million budget came from the Kochs via their group Stand Together.[6]
In 2014, Koch launched Freedom Partners Action Fund, a super PAC. The group's stated goal was to "support candidates who share our vision of free markets and a free society and oppose candidates who support intrusive government policies that push the American Dream out of reach for the American people."[7]
Notable endorsements
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See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ NBC News, "David Koch, billionaire conservative activist and philanthropist, dies at 79," August 23, 2019
- ↑ Bloomberg, "Charles G. Koch," accessed December 14, 2015
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Koch Industries, "History," accessed December 14, 2015
- ↑ Stand Together, "About Us," accessed July 28, 2025
- ↑ The Guardian, "How the Koch brothers built the most powerful rightwing group you've never heard of," September 26, 2018
- ↑ The Guardian, "Charles Koch’s network launches $20m campaign backing Trump tax breaks," January 27, 2025
- ↑ Politico, "Kochs launch new super PAC," June 17, 2014
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