Key Finding
George Soros transferred $18 billion to Open Society Foundations, which distributes nearly $1 billion per year. His son Alex Soros now controls the empire and has made it "more political" — moving $60 million from a criminal justice nonprofit into direct political spending.
The Empire
The Soros political and philanthropic network is one of the largest in the world. Open Society Foundations (OSF), endowed with approximately $18 billion, distributes nearly $1 billion annually to causes spanning criminal justice reform, democracy promotion, climate change, voting rights, and media funding across dozens of countries.
The Transition
In 2023, Alex Soros formally took over leadership of OSF from his father George, who is now in his 90s. The transition marked a significant shift in strategy: under Alex, the organization became "more political" according to multiple reporting sources, consolidating programs for faster action on priority issues.
The most dramatic move: Alex Soros redirected $60 million from the Fund for Policy Reform — a criminal justice-focused nonprofit within the OSF ecosystem — into Democracy PAC II for direct political spending in the 2024 cycle. The total Soros political spending for 2024 reached $60.7 million, almost entirely flowing through this structure.
The Network
| Entity | Function | Scale |
|---|---|---|
| Open Society Foundations | Global philanthropy | $1B/year |
| Democracy PAC II | Federal political spending | $60.7M (2024) |
| Fund for Policy Reform | Criminal justice / policy | $60M redirected |
| DA prosecutor funding | Local elections | Scaling back |
The Progressive Prosecutor Movement
One of the Soros network's most controversial investments has been funding progressive prosecutor campaigns across America. Soros-backed district attorneys won races in major cities including Philadelphia, Chicago, San Francisco, and Los Angeles. However, the movement has faced backlash — San Francisco DA Chesa Boudin was recalled, and the network has reportedly begun scaling back its prosecutor funding.
Soros vs. Koch: A Comparison
The Soros and Koch networks are often compared as mirror-image political machines. Both operate through a mix of philanthropy, policy advocacy, and electoral spending. But their structures differ significantly:
- Scale: OSF ($1B/year philanthropy) vs. Koch ($548M/cycle political)
- Transparency: OSF publishes grant data; Koch network uses 501(c)(4) dark money
- Focus: Soros is global with diverse causes; Koch is domestically focused on deregulation
- Electoral spending: Koch network's AFP Action ($138.5M) far exceeds Soros direct political ($60.7M)
The Bottom Line
Under Alex Soros, the family's political network is becoming more focused, more aggressive, and more directly political. The $18 billion endowment ensures the Soros influence machine will operate for decades — but the question is whether the next generation's strategy will be as effective as the founder's.
Sources
- Open Society Foundations: Annual reports and grant database
- Federal Election Commission: Democracy PAC II filings (2024)
- The Wall Street Journal: "Alex Soros takes the reins" (2023)
- Politico: "The Soros political network evolution" (2024)
- IRS Form 990: Fund for Policy Reform filings