Left-wing billionaire, investor and philanthropist George Soros, 92, is reportedly handing the reins of his $25 billion empire to his younger son, 37-year-old Alexander "Alex" Soros.
"I’m more political," Alex Soros told The Wall Street Journal in the first interview since his selection, indicating his intent on broadening his father's liberal goals.
He reportedly plans on continue in his father's footsteps in backing left leaning politicians.
"We think alike," George Soros said of his son and now successor, namely on voting and abortion rights, as well as gender equity.
"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," Alex Soros said, suggesting a significant financial role of the Soros foundation in 2024.
He expressed concern to the Journal over the prospect of former President Donald Trump returning to the White House.
The Journal reported that Alex Soros was elected chairman of the Soros’s nonprofit Open Society Foundations, known as OSF, in December and now directs political activity as president of Soros’s super PAC, Democracy PAC, which has supported the campaigns of left-wing district attorneys and law enforcement in mostly Democratic US. cities, including that of Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, who is prosecuting Trump.
Alex Soros has recently met with Biden administration officials, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y, and heads of state, including Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, The Journal reported. George Soros told the Journal he previously did not want one of his children to take over the foundation as "a matter of principle" because he believed it should be "managed by someone who is best suited."
"He’s earned it," George Soros said of his son Alex.
Before a falling out, it was previously believed Alex’s elder half-brother, Jonathan Soros, 52, a lawyer with a finance background, was to be their father's successor, the Journal said.
In contrast with some on the left, Alex Soros said he believes free speech has become too restricted on some college campuses.
"I have some differences with my generation in regard to free speech and other things – I grew up watching Bill Maher before bed, after all," he said.
OSF directs about $1.5 billion a year to organizations backing human rights around the world, helping build democracies and some universities and education institutions, the Journal said.
Alex Soros is the only family member on the investment committee overseeing Soros Fund Management, which oversees money for the foundation and the family.
A Soros spokesperson said most of its $25 billion will be directed to OSF in the coming years, and about $125 million has been set aside for the super PAC.