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Nicholas Pritzker

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Nicholas Pritzker
Nicholas pritzker.jpg
Basic facts
Organization:Tao Capital Partners
Role:Chairman
Location:San Francisco, California
Education:•Lake Forest College
•University of Chicago


Nicholas Pritzker II is an heir to the Pritzker family's estate, which grew over generations through diversified business holdings including Hyatt Hotels and The Marmon Group. Pritzker is also the founder of Tao Capital Partners, an investment firm based out of San Francisco, California, that, according to the firm's website, focuses on alternative energy companies and innovative businesses with a positive impact.[1][2][3]

  • Pritzker has contributed in support of several ballot measure committees in the state of California, including the 2020 Tax on Commercial and Industrial Properties for Education and Local Government Funding Initiative, the 2016 Marijuana Legalization Initiative, and the 2016 Background Checks for Ammunition Purchases and Large-Capacity Ammunition Magazine Ban Initiative.[4]

    • Career

    Pritzker earned a B.A. from Lake Forest College in 1968 and a J.D. from the University of Chicago in 1974. He began working for Hyatt Hotels Corporation, one of the Pritzker family's Chicago-based business holdings, in 1978. Pritzker worked as the executive vice president of development at Hyatt Hotels Corporation and served as the vice-chairman of the company's board of directors until his retirement in 2009. He continues to serve the Hyatt organization as the vice-chairman of the Global Hyatt Corporation.[5][6][7][8]

    Pritzker is the chairman and co-founder of Tao Capital Partners, which is an investment firm that focuses on alternative energy companies and innovative businesses with a positive impact, according to the firm's website.[2][3]

    Boards and philanthropy

    In 2017, Pritzker joined the board of Juul Labs, an electronic cigarette company. Pritzker is also the co-chairman and co-founder of the Clean Energy Trust, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that aims to support clean energy companies in the Midwest. He is also the founder and chairman of the Libra Foundation, a private foundation focused on human rights, social justice, and climate change mitigation. In addition, Pritzker serves as the vice president of the Pritzker Foundation's Endowment Fund.[9][10][11][12]

    Pritzker previously served as the vice-chairman of Conservation International, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization focused on global environmental protection, and as the chairman of the Grand Victoria Foundation, a private foundation that aims to support communities across Illinois.[5][13][14]

    Political activity

    Ballot measure activity

    Overview of ballot measure support and opposition

    The following table details Pritzker's ballot measure stances available on Ballotpedia:

    Ballot measure support and opposition for Nicholas Pritzker
    Ballot measure Year Position Result
    California Proposition 15, Tax on Commercial and Industrial Properties for Education and Local Government Funding Initiative (2020) 2020 Supported  DefeateddDefeated
    California Proposition 64, Marijuana Legalization (2016) 2016 Supported  ApprovedaApproved
    California Proposition 63, Background Checks for Ammunition Purchases and Large-Capacity Ammunition Magazine Ban (2016) 2016 Supported  ApprovedaApproved
    California Proposition 34, Abolition of the Death Penalty Initiative (2012) 2012 Supported Defeatedd Defeated

    California Proposition 15, Tax on Commercial and Industrial Properties for Education and Local Government Funding Initiative (2020)

    See also: California Proposition 15, Tax on Commercial and Industrial Properties for Education and Local Government Funding Initiative (2020)

    Schools and Communities First lead the campaign that qualified the initiated constitutional amendment for the November 3, 2020, election. The measure was designed to implement a tax on industrial and commercial properties based on market value and allocate the additional revenue to local government and school districts. Pritzker contributed $100,000 to the Schools and Communities First PAC in support of the initiative.[15]

    California Proposition 64, Marijuana Legalization (2016)

    See also: California Proposition 64, Marijuana Legalization (2016)

    California Proposition 64, the Marijuana Legalization Initiative, was on the November 8, 2016, ballot in California as an initiated state statute. Proposition 64 passed with 57.13 percent of the vote, which made recreational marijuana legal in state law. Pritzker donated $450,000 to support the measure.[16]

    California Proposition 63, Background Checks for Ammunition Purchases and Large-Capacity Ammunition Magazine Ban (2016)

    See also: California Proposition 63, Background Checks for Ammunition Purchases and Large-Capacity Ammunition Magazine Ban (2016)

    California Proposition 63, which prohibited the possession of large-capacity ammunition magazines and required certain individuals to pass a background check to purchase ammunition, passed on November 8, 2016. Pritzker supported the initiated state statute by donating $250,000 to the Safety for All Committee.[17]

    California Proposition 34, Abolition of the Death Penalty Initiative (2012)

    See also: California Proposition 34, Abolition of the Death Penalty Initiative (2012)

    California Proposition 34, an initiated state statute, was defeated on November 6, 2012. The measure proposed the repeal of the death penalty in California, which would have been replaced by life in prison without the possibility of parole. Pritzker contributed $500,000 in support of the repeal.[18]

    See also

    External links

    Footnotes

    1. ↑ The Wall Street Journal, "Inside the Breakup of the Pritzker Empire," November 26, 2013
    2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Forbes, "The World's Billionaires: #1275 Nicholas Pritzker, II," accessed August 22, 2016
    3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Tao Capital Partners, "Home," accessed August 22, 2016
    4. ↑ Cal-Access, "Pritzker, Nicholas," accessed August 21, 2019
    5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 CrunchBase, "Nick Pritzker," accessed August 22, 2016
    6. ↑ Bloomberg, "Nicholas J. Pritzker J.D.," accessed August 22, 2016
    7. ↑ LinkedIn, "Hyatt Hotels Corporation," accessed August 22, 2016
    8. ↑ Clean Energy Trust, "Nick Pritzker," accessed August 22, 2016
    9. ↑ CNBC, "E-cigarette maker Juul is raising $150 million after spinning out of vaping company," published December 19, 2017, accessed August 21, 2019
    10. ↑ Inside Philanthropy, "How One of the Country’s Wealthiest Families Is Linking Up Climate and Justice," January 14, 2015
    11. ↑ Bloomberg, "Company Overview of Pritzker Foundation, Endowment Fund," accessed August 22, 2016
    12. ↑ Clean Energy Trust, "Home," accessed August 22, 2016
    13. ↑ Conservation International, "About Us," accessed August 22, 2016
    14. ↑ Grand Victoria Foundation, "About Us," accessed August 22, 2016
    15. ↑ http://cal-access.sos.ca.gov/Campaign/Committees/Detail.aspx?id=1403098&view=received California Secretary of State, "Campaign Finance: Schools and Communities First," accessed August 23, 2019]
    16. ↑ Los Angeles Times, "Billionaire activists like Sean Parker and George Soros are fueling the campaign to legalize pot," published November 2, 2016, accessed August 22, 2019
    17. ↑ California Secretary of State, "Campaign Finance: Pritzker, Nicholas," accessed August 22, 2019
    18. ↑ California Secretary of State, "Campaign Finance: Pritzker, Nicholas," accessed August 22, 2019
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