Bill Daley and Ken Griffin (Credit: Wikipedia and Getty Images)
Hedge fund billionaire Ken Griffin is giving another $1 million to Bill Daley’s mayoral campaign, matching his earlier contribution this month, and coming just weeks after he made headlines around the world for a record-shattering $238 million Manhattan penthouse purchase.
Griffin, CEO of Citadel, is among a number of business leaders putting their money behind Daley, according to Crain’s, which reported on the latest million-dollar donation.
That list of contributors includes a number of people in the real estate industry, who have given Daley more than $650,000, according to an analysis by The Real Deal.
Daley, a former investment banker and U.S. Commerce Secretary, leads the pack of mayoral contenders in large campaign contributions from industry leaders.
With the new infusion of cash, Daley will have surpassed the $8 million mark, with just a week until the election, according to Crain’s.
Leading real estate contributors include Michigan Avenue Real Estate Group owner Thomas Meador, who donated $200,000 to the campaign, and Sam Zell, Equity Commonwealth chairman, who kicked in $125,000, TRD found.
While not in the real estate industry, Griffin’s massive home purchases in Chicago, London, Florida and most recently New York, make him one of the biggest individual real estate investors in the country of late. [Crain’s] — John O’Brien