Richard DeVos Jr.

Richard DeVos Jr.
Basic facts
Organization:	The Windquest Group
Role:	Chairman
Location:	Grand Rapids, Mich.
Education:	Northwood University

Richard "Dick" DeVos Jr. is the chairman of The Windquest Group, having served as its president from 2002 to 2020, and the former president of Amway, a multi-level marketing company co-founded by his father Richard DeVos Sr. DeVos was the Republican candidate for governor of Michigan in 2006 but lost to incumbent Jennifer Granholm (D). He is involved in public policy and advocates for what he says is policy "rooted in free-market capitalism, individual freedom, and opportunity." DeVos' wife, Betsy DeVos, chaired the Republican Party of Michigan and served as secretary of education under the Donald Trump (R) administration from 2017 to 2021.

Biography

DeVos received a bachelor's degree in business administration from Northwood University in 1981. He then served as vice president of foreign operations of Amway from 1986 to 1989. DeVos left Amway to found The Windquest Group, a privately held enterprise and investment management firm, in 1989. He also founded The Dick and Betsy DeVos Family Foundation (1989), was elected to the Michigan State Board of Education (1990), and was appointed the president and CEO of the Orlando Magic (1991) before returning to Amway as president in 1993.

DeVos left Amway in 2002, and served as president of The Windquest Group from 2002 to 2020. Other work included founding the West Michigan Aviation Academy charter school, opening Reserve Wine and Food, and relaunching Grand Action—a nonprofit that fosters public-private partnerships—as Grand Action 2.0.

Work and activities

Legislative and policy work

Education and school choice

After serving on the Michigan State Board of Education for two years, DeVos co-founded the Education Freedom Fund in 1993. As of October 22, 2025, the fund provided private scholarships to low-income families in Michigan to attend schools of their choice.

In a 2016 article on DeVos and his wife, Betsy, EducationWeek's Alyson Klein wrote that the couple "sit at the center of an extensive policy and political ecosystem aimed at expanding choice through charter schools, virtual schools, education saving accounts, and vouchers." She added: "Over the past two decades, the DeVos family has given millions of dollars to pro-voucher and pro-charter candidates, both through direct contributions and through political action committees, including one associated with the American Federation for Children. ... They’ve also helped finance a network of think tanks and advocacy groups that support school choice both at the national level and in their home state of Michigan, such as the Great Lakes Education Project, a bipartisan organization that promotes choice."

DeVos founded the West Michigan Aviation Academy in 2010, a tuition-free public charter high school that specialized in STEM courses and pilot and aerospace industry workforce needs.

Right to work

In 2012, DeVos was a prominent donor to groups opposing Proposal 2, a proposed constitutional amendment that would have guaranteed union rights to bargain in Michigan. Voters defeated the proposal 57%-43%. Following the general election, DeVos contributed to a campaign proposing a right to work law—legislation that bans mandatory union membership as a condition for employment in unionized workplaces. According to The New York Times, the right to work legislation supporters "included national conservative groups like Americans for Prosperity, founded by the philanthropists David and Charles Koch, and a potent coalition of local business groups and donors led by Mr. DeVos."

The Michigan Legislature passed the right to work law in 2012, but it was repealed on February 13, 2024. DeVos said of the repeal: "As Americans, we value the right to associate with causes and people we believe in. But we also must protect the right to disassociate with those we don’t. Right to work required unions to demonstrate value for their members. It’s not anti-union, it is the ultimate pro-worker position."

2006 gubernatorial campaign

DeVos challenged incumbent Gov. Jennifer Granholm (D) in Michigan's 2006 gubernatorial election. The election was set against the backdrop of the economy and Michigan's 6.3% unemployment rate, the fourth highest in the country at the time.

DeVos said his experience in business qualified him for the position: "The case is being made each and every day as we hear stories of families who are forced to leave Michigan because we haven't been able to turn around employment. Our economy continues to underperform the nation. People have recognized that new leadership is required with different background, different experience."

Granholm defeated DeVos 56%-42% on November 7, 2006.

Notable endorsements

See also: Ballotpedia: Our approach to covering endorsements

This section displays endorsements this individual made in elections within Ballotpedia's coverage scope.

Notable candidate endorsements by Richard DeVos

Endorsee	Election	Stage	Outcome
Marco Rubio  source  (R)	President of the United States (2016)	Primary	Lost Convention

See also

• Betsy DeVos
• The Dick and Betsy DeVos Family Foundation
• What is an influencer?

External links

• Dick DeVos official website
• The Dick and Betsy DeVos Family Foundation