Overview: Jeffrey Skoll has been using his money politically for years through his activist-minded film production company, but in 2020, he came into his own as a political mega-donor. Giving millions to Biden-supporting PACs, Skoll joined the ranks of many of Silicon Valley’s biggest names in helping Democrats take the White House.
Location: Palo Alto, CA
Total Donated (2016-2020): $5,184,700
Top Recipients: Priorities USA, Senate Majority PAC
Key Issues and Tactics: Public Health, Economic Development, Education
Largest Donation to Date: $2,500,000 to Senate Majority PAC in 2020
Profile Main Body: A tech billionaire today, Skoll was born in Quebec, Canada, before moving to the United States in 1993 to attend Stanford University Business School. In 1996, he was hired at eBay as the early stage startup’s first president and full-time employee. Shortly after eBay went public and Skoll found himself newly wealthy, he founded the Skoll Foundation to help social entrepreneurs create sustainable social change. In 2004, Skoll pivoted toward a different industry with the founding of Participant Media, a film and television production company dedicated to producing films aimed at spurring social change. Skoll has served as an executive producer on films dealing with topics such as gender inequality, climate change and global health and poverty, including the 2006 documentary “An Inconvenient Truth,” but also the leftist-criticized “Waiting for Superman,” which took aim at teachers unions. In addition to his media ventures, Skoll is the founder of Capricorn Investment Group, which manages his money and is dedicated to socially responsible investing, and he is also a signatory of the Giving Pledge Campaign.
Before 2020, Skoll was decidedly not a major Democratic Party donor. But it seems this most recent cycle inspired him to jump into politics: Skoll gave $620,600 to the Biden Victory Fund, $2 million to Biden-supporting Priorities USA PAC, and he gave a total of $4.5 million to the Senate Majority PAC. Before that, Skoll’s political donations were infrequent and relatively modest for a billionaire, including $30,800 gifts to the Obama Victory Fund in 2008 and the DNC in 2016, according to FEC records.
Ideological Vibe: Skoll is solidly liberal. His activist-minded production company has covered a variety of liberal causes, though some of his films have critics on the left. Skoll hasn’t said much about the direction of the Democratic Party and donor records give few hints as to whether he supports its growing democratic socialist wing.
Hits and Misses: 2020 was the first race where Skoll invested heavily, helping Biden take the White House while his SMP donations couldn’t help Democrats grab a clear majority in the Senate. He made much smaller contributions to the campaigns of Hilary Clinton in 2016 and Barack Obama in 2012.
Looking Forward: Given Skoll’s status as a progressive-minded philanthropist focused on social change, there is no reason to suspect that he will not continue his trend of donating to Democratic candidates.
Relationships:
Member - Skoll Foundation Board of Directors, Berggruen Institute’s 21st Century Council
Officer - The Order of Canada
Contact Information: N/A