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Richard and Elizabeth Uihlein
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Richard Ellis Uihlein (/ˈjuːlaɪn/ YOO-lyne;[1] born 1945) and Elizabeth Uihlein are American billionaire businesspeople, founders of Uline and right-wing donors.[2] Richard Uihlein is also an heir to the Schlitz brewing fortune.[3]

Biographies

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Richard graduated from Phillips Andover[4] and then in 1967 from Stanford University with a BA in history.[5] A member of the Uihlein family, he is a descendant of the brewers of Schlitz beer.[6]

Until 1980, Richard Uihlein worked in international sales for General Binding Corporation, a company co-founded by his father, Edgar Uihlein.[7] That year, with start-up funds from his father, Uihlein and his wife Elizabeth (Liz) Uihlein founded Uline, a shipping supplies company; the couple continue to own the company.[8][9] The company expanded rapidly and is now one of the largest U.S. privately held companies; in 2014, Forbes estimated a company value of between $700 million and $2 billion.[9] In 2020 Bloomberg estimated their net worth to be around $4 billion.[10]

As of 2020, the company had around 7,000 employees.[11] Liz Uihlein is the company's president;[12] the couple's four children are all executives at the company.[9] Previously headquartered in Waukegan, Illinois, the company moved to Pleasant Prairie, Wisconsin, in 2010, in return for up to $18.6 million in state incentives.[9] The couple lives in Lake Forest, Illinois; they also have a summer home in Manitowish Waters, Wisconsin.[13]

The Uihlein family also owns EAU Holdings, a resort in northern Wisconsin.[7] Richard Uihlein's cousin is Lynde Bradley Uihlein.[3]

Political activities

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Richard Uihlein has been a Republican donor for decades, and increased his political giving after Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission.[7] He has been a longtime donor to Republicans who share his ultra-conservative views.[9] Richard is a staunch social and economic conservative,[14] with views that are anti-union,[11][12][14] anti-tax,[11][14] and pro-deregulation.[14] He has a history of supporting far-right[9] candidates, and has often supported efforts in opposition to gay and transgender rights as well as abortion.[13] Although an influential donor, Richard Uihlein has been described as a person who "shuns the spotlight";[12] he and his wife rarely give interviews.[11]

Elizabeth Uihlein focuses her donations on the main GOP organizations, such as the Republican National Committee, National Republican Senatorial Committee, and National Republican Congressional Committee.[15]

National politics

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In the 2014 election cycle, the Uihleins made at least $5 million in political contributions, mostly to right-wing PACs ($1.8 million to Liberty Principles PAC; $670,000 to Americas PAC, and slightly under $500,000 to Jim DeMint's Senate Conservatives Fund and affiliated super PAC).[9]

The Uihleins gave $22 million in the 2016 election cycle.[12] In the 2016 Republican primaries, Uihlein initially supported Scott Walker and Ted Cruz; after they both dropped out of the race, Uihlein backed Donald Trump,[12] contributing money to the pro-Trump "Great America PAC" and contributing $500,000 to Trump's inauguration,[14] which he attended.[12] He also donated hundreds of thousands of dollars to the Republican National Committee.[12] Liz Uihlein also subsequently became a "mega-donor" to Trump.[11]

From 2016 to 2018, a political action committee funded by the Uihleins gave at least $646,000 to a new network of free newspapers and websites, created by Brian Timpone, that mimic local newspapers but offer pay-for-play articles to conservative clients.[16]

In the 2018 election cycle, Richard dramatically increased his political contributions,[12] making $37.7 million in contributions to outside spending groups (the fourth largest donor to such groups).[17] The couple's contributions placed them on the tier of other Republican mega-donors, such as the Koch family, Adelson, and Mercer.[13] His contributions include support for many Republican candidates in competitive primary races,[12] such as Ives[12][14] and Chris McDaniel.[12][14] Also in 2018, Uihlein gave financial support to Kevin Nicholson, a one time long-shot Republican candidate for U.S. Senate in Wisconsin; eight super PACs funded by Uihlein also expressed support for Nicholson.[14] They contributed $4 million to the Fair Courts America PAC.[18] In 2019–2020, Uihlein gave $250,000 to Allen West in his campaign for the chairmanship of the Texas Republican Party against incumbent James Dickey.[17]

In the 2020 election cycle, the Uihleins and their company had, by April 2020, contributed $1.5 million to Trump's "America First Action" super PAC, and $20 million to other Republican groups.[11][19] From 2015 to 2020, they donated $4.3 million (including $800,000 in October 2020) to Tea Party Patriots, a group that participated in the March to Save America rally that preceded the 2021 United States Capitol attack.[20]

During the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States, Liz Uihlein declared the pandemic "overhyped" and was an outspoken critic of stay-at-home directives issued to combat the spread of the virus, calling upon Republican members of the Wisconsin Legislature to push to remove Governor Tony Evers from office over the directive he issued.[11] In November 2020, the Uihleins announced to the company that they had contracted COVID.[21][22]

Uihlein was a major financial backer for the rally that preceded the January 6 attack on the Capitol.[23] Uihlein is also the biggest donor to Women Speak Out PAC, a group seeking a federal abortion ban.[23] Uihlein has also donated millions to Restoration PAC, which promotes "all marriage is for one man and one woman for life."[23]

In columns in the company catalog, Liz Uihlein frequently writes on the couple's political views, ranging from "the danger of Chinese competition, the negative health effects of marijuana use and the detriments of the Federal Reserve's low interest rate policy."[11]

During the 2022 midterm elections, Richard Uihlein contributed over $80.7 million to Republicans and Republican-aligned groups.[24] This included major spending in the 2022 Illinois gubernatorial election; Richard Uihlein gave more than $42 million to "People Who Play By The Rules PAC",[25][26] a super PAC that ran attack ads against Illinois Governor J. B. Pritzker to boost the candidacy of his opponent, Republican nominee Darren Bailey.[25][27] The super PAC was operated by Republican operative and talk radio host Dan Proft.[27] Richard Uihlein also gave $10 million directly to Bailey's campaign.[27]

During the 2022 election cycle, the Uihleins were the largest donors to Doug Mastriano's 2022 Pennsylvania gubernatorial campaign.[28] They also contributed to the U.S. Senate campaigns of Herschel Walker, Ron Johnson, and Adam Laxalt.[29] Other politicians supported by the Uihleins include Georgia representative Jody Hice and Texas representative Louie Gohmert.[30] The Uihelins contributed $3.2 million to the American Principles Project PAC between 2020 and 2022, which ran campaign ads for school board races with messages against transgender "ideology" and critical race theory.[31]

During Ohio's 2023 August special election cycle, Richard Uihlein donated $4 million to a PAC supporting Issue 1, an effort to require a 60% majority to pass citizen-initiated constitutional amendments.[32] The measure was "resoundingly rejected" by a large majority of Ohio voters.[33]

As of October 2024, Richard Uihlein had given nearly $59 million in 2024 to Restoration PAC, a leading pro-Trump super PAC that is active in the battleground states of Pennsylvania, Wisconsin and Georgia.[34]

Wisconsin politics

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The Uihleins spent hundreds of thousands of dollars in the 2011 Wisconsin Senate recall elections, in support of state senators facing recall over their support for legislation to end collective bargaining for public employees, and also backed litigation against public-employee unions, including Janus v. AFSCME.[12] He has supported conservative groups and candidates including Ted Cruz, Roy Moore, The Club for Growth, and the Illinois Policy Institute.[8][7][13][35] Uihlein is also a major donor to Liberty Principles PAC,[36] Americas PAC,[37] and Scott Walker.[38] While Uihlein spent $2.6 million in support of Illinois Governor Bruce Rauner in his successful 2014 Illinois gubernatorial election campaign, Uihlein broke with Rauner after he signed legislation in 2017 that expanded abortion coverage for women on Medicaid;[14] Uihlein gave millions to Jeanne Ives, who challenged Rauner in the 2018 Republican primary.[14][7]

Conservative organizations

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The Uihleins also finance conservative think tanks and nonprofits such as the Conservative Partnership Institute, Turning Point USA, Sons of Liberty, the Center for Security Policy,[39] Liberty Justice Center, and Think Freely Media.[40] Through the Ed Uihlein Family Foundation, the Uhleins made $40 million in grants between 2013 and 2016 to organizations such as the Intercollegiate Studies Institute, the Institute for Humane Studies, the Media Research Center, the Leadership Institute, and the Philanthropy Roundtable.[41] The Ed Uihlein Family Foundation has also donated to the American Enterprise Institute, Americans for Prosperity, the Institute for Free Speech, and the Clare Boothe Luce Policy Institute.[41]

References

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  1. ^ "Meet the Billionaire Couple Trying to Reshape the Republican Party". The New York Times. June 8, 2018 – via YouTube.
  2. ^ Isenstadt, Alex (February 6, 2023). "The megadonor couple battling in the GOP's civil war". Politico. Retrieved February 23, 2024.
  3. ^ a b The T&C 50 Political Families, Town & Country (October 12, 2015).
  4. ^ Elliott, Justin; O’Matz, Megan; Burke, Doris (October 26, 2022). "That Cardboard Box in Your Home Is Fueling Election Denial". ProPublica. Archived from the original on November 1, 2022. Retrieved October 16, 2024.
  5. ^ "Richard E. Uihlein". Bloomberg Businessweek. Archived from the original on December 6, 2013. Retrieved December 6, 2013.
  6. ^ Markay, Lachlan (January 16, 2018). "Meet the Illinoisan Trying to Buy a Wisconsin Senate Seat". The Daily Beast. Retrieved February 21, 2018.
  7. ^ a b c d e Sweet, Lynn (September 7, 2015). "Mega donor Richard Uihlein ramps up donations to conservative causes". Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved August 9, 2016.
  8. ^ a b Merrion, Paul (September 30, 2013). "The Koch of conservative politics in Illinois: Uihlein". Crain's Chicago Business. Retrieved December 6, 2013.
  9. ^ a b c d e f g Katia Savchuk (November 4, 2014). "The Little Known CEO Spending Millions To Elect Far-Right Republicans". Forbes.
  10. ^ "Billionaire Trump donors Elizabeth and Richard Uihlein have COVID". Crain's Chicago Business. November 12, 2020. Retrieved November 12, 2020.
  11. ^ a b c d e f g h Stephanie Kirchgaessner (April 23, 2020). "'It's overhyped': Trump mega-donor pushes to end Wisconsin's stay-at-home order". The Guardian.
  12. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Michelle Ye Hee Lee & Michael Scherer, Meet the little-known 'big fish' megadonor setting the tone for GOP primary races, The Washington Post (April 29, 2018).
  13. ^ a b c d Saul, Stephanie; Hakim, Danny (June 7, 2018). "The Most Powerful Conservative Couple You've Never Heard Of". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved August 3, 2020.
  14. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Severns, Maggie (March 19, 2018). "The biggest Republican megadonor you've never heard of". Politico. Retrieved March 19, 2018.
  15. ^ Isenstadt, Alex (February 6, 2023). "The megadonor couple battling in the GOP's civil war". Politico. Retrieved February 23, 2024.
  16. ^ Alba, Davey; Nicas, Jack (October 18, 2020). "As Local News Dies, a Pay-for-Play Network Rises in Its Place". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved December 10, 2020.
  17. ^ a b Patrick Svitek, Big bucks — and a big donor — fuel Allen West's bid for Texas GOP chair, Texas Tribune (January 21, 2020).
  18. ^ "Mega donors fuel over $40 million in donations for record-shattering 2023 Wisconsin Supreme Court race". PBS Wisconsin. Retrieved April 25, 2023.
  19. ^ John McCormick (August 16, 2018). "GOP Megadonor's Millions Go to Midterm Hopefuls Who Keep Losing". Bloomberg LP. Retrieved November 5, 2018.
  20. ^ Mihalopoulos, Dan (January 12, 2021). "Chicago-Area Billionaire Gave Millions To 'Patriots' Group That Backed Pro-Trump Rally". WBEZ Chicago. Retrieved January 13, 2021.
  21. ^ Meadows, Jonah (November 12, 2020). "Trump Megadonors Contract Coronavirus, Joining Fellow Billionaire". Lake Forest-Lake Bluff, IL Patch. Retrieved November 12, 2020.
  22. ^ Beck, Mary Spicuzza, Daniel Bice and Molly (November 12, 2020). "Uline founders Liz and Dick Uihlein test positive for COVID-19. She has criticized coronavirus restrictions". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Retrieved November 12, 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  23. ^ a b c Gorner, Jeremy; Pearson, Rick (July 27, 2022). "Bailey declines to answer hot topic questions". Chicago Tribune. Chicago, IL. p. 7. Retrieved July 27, 2022.
  24. ^ Evers-Hillstrom, Karl (November 5, 2022). "Here are the 10 biggest donors in the midterm elections". The Hill. Retrieved April 25, 2023.
  25. ^ a b Lynn Swee, "GOP megadonor kicks in $13.9 million more to defeat Pritzker, $1 million to oppose union rights amendment", Chicago Sun-Times (October 9, 2022).
  26. ^ "People Who Play By The Rules PAC". Center for Illinois Politics.
  27. ^ a b c Craig Wall, GOP megadonor tops $50M in donations to Darren Bailey, conservative super-PAC1, WLS-TV (October 11, 2022).
  28. ^ Kapos, Shia; Ol, Olivia; ER. "Uihlein box of tricks". POLITICO. Retrieved April 25, 2023.
  29. ^ "Richard Uihlein". Forbes. Retrieved April 25, 2023.
  30. ^ Saul, Stephanie; Hakim, Danny (June 7, 2018). "The Most Powerful Conservative Couple You've Never Heard Of". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved April 25, 2023.
  31. ^ Atterbury, Andrew (September 19, 2022). "National conservative groups pour money into local school board races". Politico. Retrieved February 10, 2023.
  32. ^ BeMiller, Haley. "GOP megadonor Richard Uihlein bankrolls push to make it harder to amend Ohio constitution". Columbus Dispatch. Retrieved July 19, 2023.
  33. ^ Smyth, Julie Carr; Hendrickson, Samantha (August 8, 2023). "Voters in Ohio reject GOP-backed proposal that would have made it tougher to protect abortion rights". Associated Press. Retrieved August 8, 2023.
  34. ^ Wright, David; Schouten, Fredreka (October 16, 2024). "Elon Musk and other billionaires invest staggering sums into electing Trump, plus other takeaways from third-quarter filings". CNN. Retrieved October 23, 2024.
  35. ^ Peters, Jeremy W. (August 3, 2020). "These Conservatives Have a Laser Focus: 'Owning the Libs'". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved August 3, 2020.
  36. ^ Reform, Illinois Campaign for Political. "Liberty Principles PAC". Illinois Sunshine.
  37. ^ Cooper, Kent (August 15, 2013). "Uihlein Funds Chicago Radio Ads". Roll Call. Retrieved December 6, 2013.
  38. ^ Lueders, Bill (February 9, 2012). "Bill Lueders: Out-of-state donors have stories to tell". The Cap Times. Retrieved December 6, 2013.
  39. ^ Oprysko, Caitlin. "Where the Uihleins sent their cash after the insurrection". POLITICO. Retrieved April 25, 2023.
  40. ^ Sfondeles, tina; Dumke, Mick. "As Conservative Group Grows In Influence, Financial Dealings Enrich Its Leaders". ProPublica. Retrieved April 25, 2023.
  41. ^ a b Robare, Matthew; Callahan, David. "Levers of Influence: How These Top Donors Back Conservative Causes". Inside Philanthropy. Retrieved April 25, 2023.
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