George Soros, the billionaire financier and philanthropist who frequently uses his wealth to advance progressive causes, is handing over his business interests to his “more political” son Alexander. The Hungarian-American made the announcement in an interview published in the Wall Street Journal on Sunday.
Soros, 92, said that his son Alexander, 37, will take the reins of his Open Society Foundation (OSF), as well as the rest of his estimated $25 billion in wealth and other interests. Soros also said of Alexander, who was elected OSF chairman in December, replacing his father, that he has “earned” the new role.
Speaking to the same publication, Alexander Soros said that he intends to continue his father’s legacy of funding progressive issues – but that he intends to support various causes like voting rights, abortion rights, and gender equality.
“I’m more political,” Alexander Soros said, comparing himself to his father. The younger Soros was shown in visitor logs to have visited the White House on at least 14 occasions over the past 18 months. “As much as I would love to get money out of politics, as long as the other side is doing it, we will have to do it too.”
Alexander Soros will, he said, continue to use his family’s wealth to back liberal political candidates. He also noted his concern at the potential return of Donald Trump to the White House in 2024, suggesting that Soros money will be spent on furthering the aims of Democratic Party candidates.
Earlier this week, the younger Soros tweeted a picture of himself standing alongside US Vice President Kamala Harris
The Open Society Foundation, of which Alexander Soros was deputy chair since 2017, funnels around $1.5 billion annually to various causes in the United States and abroad. His influence on the foundation has seen it steer some of its efforts towards assisting progressive Jewish organizations, environmental issues, and US workers’ rights.
Some figures on the right have said that the Soros family has had a negative influence on political affairs. Last month, Elon Musk claimed that he believed George Soros “hates humanity” and compared him to the comic-book supervillain Magneto.
On the contrary, though, says Alexander. “With my background, there are a lot of ways I could have gone astray,” he told the WSJ, “Instead I became a workaholic, and my life is my work.”