Snapshot: Real estate and casino money made the Bluhms a force in the Midwest political scene, commanding attention from elected officials and the press alike.
Location: Chicago, IL
Giving Focus: Democratic Party power
Top Recipients: Hillary Action Fund, Senate Majority PAC
Background: Neil Bluhm and his family are among Chicago’s most well-connected philanthropists. Bluhm made his money first in real estate, starting JMB Realty in 1970 and buying up major properties in Chicago like the Ritz Carlton. He bought several casinos across the Midwest and East Coast, and now heads Rush Street Interactive, an online gaming company. Now worth around $4 billion, Bluhm has cemented his place in Chicago: he is a trustee of the Art Institute of Chicago and minority owner of the Chicago Bulls and Chicago White Sox. The Bluhm Family Charitable Foundation launched in 2007 and Bluhm has focused most of his philanthropy on higher education—including a $25 million gift to Northwestern University, where Bluhm went to law school—and he also donates regularly to cultural institutions and Jewish organizations.
The Bluhm family makes powerful friends with their political donations. Neil exerts most of his influence within Illinois while making a handful of large gifts to national liberal and Democratic Party funds. In the 2016 election cycle, he gave roughly $230,000 to the Hillary Action Fund and $1.35 million to the Senate Majority PAC. Within his home state, Bluhm still favors Democrats but is more bipartisan—he has made five-figure gifts to several Illinois Republican state legislature candidates over the last decade. Bluhm’s daughter Leslie is a key Chicago donor in her own right. She gave more than $100,000 to Gov. J.B. Prtizker’s campaign and hosted a fundraiser for former law school classmate and longtime friend Lori Lightfoot as she ran for mayor—Leslie and her sister Meredith Bluhm-Wolf gave more than $200,000 to Lightfoot’s successful campaign. Both Neil and Leslie were among Biden’s top bundlers in 2020, raising more than $100,000 each for the campaign.
Chicago media have criticized Neil’s relationship with local politicians as merely serving his business interests, and the family’s donor records indicate a giving strategy aimed more at maintaining influence than advancing a political agenda. Neil has also publicly criticized the progressive wing of the Democratic Party. The sincerity of the Bluhm’s commitment to the Democrats aside, expect the Bluhms to continue supporting Democrats and local politicians helpful to their real estate and casino interests.
Lessons For BT Readers: It’s a sad reality of the world, but money talks. Making regular donations to a politician or organization can earn you their ear, and potentially some influence. While BT would not endorse using philanthropy as a vehicle for personal gain, readers might be able to use this approach to nudge a wayward group in their town that could use a new direction.