Top 10 Richest Politicians in America 2021

An interesting update on the list of the richest politicians in the USA, In America, just as it is in many countries of the world, politics seems to be the domain of the very wealthy. Running for political office costs a lot of money; and then again even after spending the money, and running an efficient campaign, there is still no guarantee of winning the elections. It is for this reason that politics is best left to the men with the biggest money bags; if the election flops, they would still have money to fall back on. 

Sometimes, they enter into politics because it is the only thing that they know to do; maybe their parents were politicians, and so they have been groomed from childhood to enter public life. Other times they enter into politics because they wish to protect the interests, or wealth of their families and friends.

Without wasting time further, let us now look at the richest politicians in America, and also look at what we can learn about them.

Top 10 Richest Politicians in America

1. Michael Bloomberg Net Worth $60 Billion

Michael Rubens Bloomberg tops the list of the richest players in American politics! He is a billionaire businessman, politician, philanthropist, and author. Mike Bloomberg is mostly known as the owner and co-founder of the world-renowned financial information company called Bloomberg LP. As a politician, he was the mayor of New York City from 2002 to 2013, and then in 2019, he was a candidate in the presidential primaries under the Democratic Party. 

Michael Rubens Bloomberg is an American billionaire businessman, politician, philanthropist, and author. He is mostly known as the majority owner and co-founder of the world-renowned financial information company called Bloomberg LP. As a politician, he was the mayor of New York City from 2002 to 2013 and was a candidate in the presidential primaries under the Democratic Party. 

He is the biggest shark ion the tank; he weighs in at an estimated USD60 billion dollars, most of which he made through his company Bloomberg LP. Let us not forget that Mike Bloomberg has given out over 8 billion dollars to people in need through the giving pledge. His campaign for the primaries is on record as the most expensive primary campaign in the history of the US.

2. President Donald Trump Net Worth $2.1 billion

With an estimated net worth of over $2.1 billion dollars to boast about, President Donald Trump is without a doubt the second richest politician in America. Some analysts say that his wealth has fallen significantly, along with some fruitless business ventures that he has invested in. Bloomberg thinks he is worth a much-reduced figure. Donal Trump made most of his money directly from Golf courses, winery, and real estate investment, as well as his television career on The Apprentice. 

3. Gov. Jim Justice Net Worth $1.2 Billion

 With a net worth of around 1.2 billion dollars, West Virginia Governor Jim Justice is the number 3 man when it comes to wealthiest in politicians in America. Gov. Jim Justice is the only billionaire in the whole of West Virginia, and he became governor in 2016. His wealth comes from a coal business he inherited from his father. Today, he is a mining magnate; he has coal mines in five different states in America. 

4. Bill Haslam Net Worth $1.8 Billion

Former Governor Bill Haslam of Tennessee is without a shade of a doubt one of the country’s richest politicians. According to calculations from Forbes, Haslam is worth an estimated $1.8 billion dollars to boast of. Haslam inherited the Flying J truck stop chain, and he was president of the company until 1999. He began his political career as the mayor of Knoxville back in 2003, but it was until 2010 that he was elected governor of Tennessee. 

5. Tom Steyer Net Worth 1.6 Billion Dollars

Thomas Fahr Steyer of the Democratic Party comes in next with a hefty weight of 1.6 billion dollars. Tom Steyer is not a full-time politician, however, he is a hedge fund manager, philanthropist, environmentalist, liberal activist, and fundraiser.

 He made his money at Farallon Capital which he founded and served as former co-senior-managing-partner. He is also the co-founder of Onecalifornia Bank, which became (through merger) Beneficial State Bank. 

He did election fundraising for John Kerry, Hillary Clinton, and Barack Obama, and he also contested in the democratic primaries but pulled out after spending nearly 200 million dollars without confirming any delegate’s votes.

6. Mark Dayton Net Worth $1.6 Billion

 Estimated net worth: $1.6 billion (Dayton family)

Former Governor Mark Dayton is what you can call old money: Even though his personal net worth isn’t clear, we do know that Minnesota former Governor Mark Dayton comes from a very wealthy family that places him among the richest politicians in America.

The Dayton Family has a vast fortune of approximately $1.6 billion. The foundations of their fortunes can be traced back to Dayton’s great-grandfather, who was the original founder of the department store business that his family would go on to build into Target. That’s right; Gov. Mark Dayton’s family are the minds that drive Target. Before showing his hand in politics, and becoming governor, Dayton was a Senator from 2001-2007, and he was also the state’s auditor for a stretch in the 1990s.

7. Bruce Rauner Net Worth $400 Million

Former Governor Bruce Rauner of Illinois is not in the billionaires club, but he comes dangerously close. He won the office in 2015 and is backed by a fortune that is worth just under $1 billion, according to NBC Chicago.

Rauner has training in money handling, and worked in finance, having served as chairman of GTCR, a Chicago-based private equity firm before his election. He also founded his own establishment; a venture capital firm called R8 Capital Partners, with the goal of investing in smaller, local companies. He trained in economics at Dartmouth, and after that, he bagged an MBA from Harvard.  

8. Greg Gianforte Net Worth $315.7 million

Rep. Greg Gianforte from Montana comes next on our list of the wealthiest politicians in the USA. He is the second-richest member of Congress. He was elected into congress in 2016 but was already a made man before then.

A big part of Greg Gianforte’s fortune comes from the sale of the software company he founded. He sold Brightwork Development, to McAfee Associates for $10 million in 1994, and then hit the jackpot with the sale of RightNow Technologies to Oracle for $1.5 billion in 2012.

9. Governor Jared Polis Net Worth $300 million

Governor Jared Polis is not only one of the youngest politicians in U.S. politics, but he is also one of the wealthiest. With an estimated treasure chest of $300 million, Polis serves Colorado’s 2nd Congressional District and is the first openly gay parent to serve in Congress.

The young democrat Polis built his fortune as an entrepreneur and a very driven one at that. He was the founder of American Information Systems, and he made that big move while he was still a student at Princeton. After that, he founded more companies, including Proflowers.com. He was first elected into congress in 2008.

10. Sen. Rick Scott Net Worth $255 million

Former Governor Rick Scott, from Florida, has acquired a reputation for being quite energetic and outspoken. Aside from that, he is loaded with cash. Rick Scott is estimated to have a net worth of $255 million making him the tenth richest politician in America, and some analysts say that they are quite certain that his fortune is bigger than that.

Prior to getting involved with politics, Scott largely built his wealth through the health care industry, and let us not forget that he earned his stripes by serving in the Navy. That was prior to starting his career in business. He transferred his assets to a blind trust after becoming governor to enable him to concentrate on the job and avoid conflicts of interest.

11. Rep. Darrell Issa Net Worth: $250 million

With an estimated net worth of about $250 million dollars, Representative Darrell Issa, from California’s 49th District, is the next man on our list. He was elected to his ninth term in 2016, which tells of a political career spanning over 36 years. 

Roll Call estimates his wealth to be about $250 million, making him the richest member of Congress. His fortune comes from several sources, though, not just politics; he was CEO of Directed Electronics which is an auto parts and accessories company. Having decided not to pursue reelection, he now does consultations and lobbying. 

12. Rep. Dave Trott Net worth: $177.1 million

Michigan’s Dave Trott comes next on our list with a treasure chest worth about $119 million, according to Roll Call. He is a lawyer by training, and his law firm made money by working with banks and other lenders who owned bad mortgages. Apparently, he specialized in handing out eviction notices to home occupants, and that was a business that earned him the title of “foreclosure king.” He served in congress, representing Michigan. 

Related: 

Closing:

This list of the richest politicians in America includes someone who has refused to release his tax returns. Therefore, it is almost impossible to be sure of what he truly has as assets. However, there is no doubt that politics can be a financially rewarding career; many people come into immense wealth through the connections they make while in political office. Many politicians can also enrich themselves by receiving bribes, kickbacks, lobbying, and also by outrightly stealing the government’s money.