Who is the Richest Politician in America?

Who is the richest and wealthiest among the politicians in America? The answer is Michael Bloomberg, who is listed as the 30th richest people in the world, with a net worth of $18.1 billion, in the Forbes 2011 list of the world’s billionaires. Bloomberg is the Mayor of New York City from January 1, 2002 to present. He assumed office as the 108^th Mayor of New York City when he was elected as a Republican in 2001. He was re-elected in 2005, and elected to a third term in 2009. Bloomberg decided to leave the Republican Party and declared himself as an independent on June 19, 2007.

Michael Rubens Bloomberg was born on February 14, 1942 in Boston, Massachusetts, USA. His father, William Henry Bloomberg (1906–1963), who was a real estate agent, is the son of Alexander “Elick” Bloomberg, a Jewish immigrant. His mother, Charlotte Rubens Bloomberg (January 2, 1909– June 19, 2011), was born in New Jersey. She’s the daughter of a Jewish-Russian immigrant.

Bloomberg is also the 13^th wealthiest person in America according to the 2011 Forbes 400 list. He is also the 23^rd most powerful people in the world in 2011 according to Forbes. His source of wealth is coming from Bloomberg L.P., a privately held financial news and information services media company he founded and owned by eighty-eight percent.  Bloomberg is also known for his great philanthropic endeavors. Through his Bloomberg Family Foundation, he donated and/or pledged $138 million in 2004, $144 million in 2005, $165 million in 2006, and $205 million in 2007, making him the seventh-largest individual contributor to philanthropy in the U.S. for 2007. He also made a donation of over $300 million to Johns Hopkins University, where he served as the chairman of the board from 1996 to 2002.

In 2008, Bloomberg’s website announced a combined donation of $500 million with Bill Gates to help governments in developing countries with tobacco control. On July 21, 2011, Bloomberg announced that he would donate $50 million to Sierra Club’s “Beyond Coal” campaign, the grassroots organization’s efforts to close older coal plants and prevent new ones from being built. The gift, spread out over four years, will come from Bloomberg Philanthropies. Aside from the mentioned philanthropic activities above, Bloomberg has also been involved in anonymous donations.

Source: Forbes.com, Wikipedia.com and Bloomberg.com. 

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