Overview: The Simons are in the top 30 of the world’s richest people, and they spread their wealth in the political world regularly. Backed by Jim Simons’s career as a mathematician and hedge fund founder, the Simons couple give heavily, though not exclusively, to Democrats at the national level and in their home state of New York. Marilyn heads the Simons Foundation, and much of the couple’s non-political giving goes toward education and autism research.
Location: New York, NY
Total Donated (2016-2020): $66,319,200 (between the two)
Top Recipients: Hillary Clinton, Democratic Party
Key Issues: Education, Autism Research
Largest Donation to Date: $4 million to House Majority PAC
Profile Main Body: Jim Simons quietly built his legacy in several chapters, first as a mathematician, then as a businessman, and now a philanthropist. A graduate of UC Berkeley, Simons would go on to teach mathematics at MIT and Harvard, then work as a code breaker for the NSA before founding the Renaissance Technologies hedge fund in 1984. Although he technically retired from the fund in 2010, Simons still benefits from Renaissance and boasts a net worth $23.5 billion. He and his wife Marilyn created the Simons Foundation to support education and autism research—Marilyn is currently the organization’s president. Jim also founded Math For America, a fellowship program for math and science teachers in New York.
On the national political stage, the Simonses have become a leading force for Democrats. The two give heavily to Democratic Party funds both nationally and in New York, but are much more bipartisan at the state level. Jim consistently backs a handful of Republicans in the New York State legislature, and has given just under $1 million to the state’s Republican Party; at the same time, he is one of the largest individual donors to the New York Democratic Party. He gave more than $7 million to the Clinton campaign in 2016, millions more to Senate and House campaign funds, gave $20 million to Democrats in the 2018 midterms, and in the 2020 cycle, he and Marilyn gave around $8 million to Biden’s campaign and supporting PACs, not including the $7 million he gave to the Senate Majority PAC in 2020 alone.
Ideological Vibe: Moderate. For a couple in the top 50 of the world’s richest people, the Simonses are reliably liberal donors at the national level, but also consistent donors to a handful of New York Republicans. The couple make the biggest gifts to Democratic Party campaign funds, and made large donations to the 2016 Clinton campaign during the primary.
Hits and Misses: Jim and Marilyn Simons gave early and often to Hillary Clinton and the Democrats in 2016, only to see the party lose all control of D.C. They helped Democrats recapture the House during the midterms with $10 million to the House Majority PAC in 2018, but in general, the couple give consistently to incumbents they like, not making large bets on challengers.
Looking Forward: The couple continue to write six and seven-figure checks for the Democrats ahead of the 2020 election. Expect them to continue wielding their wealth and influence in liberal spaces and national politics.
Relationships: Simons Foundation—Marilyn Simons—Founder, President; Renaissance Technologies—Jim Simons—Chairman
Contact Information: N/A