Illinois Governor JB Pritzker has seen his net worth climb by more than $1 billion since he took office in 2019.
The billionaire Democrat, an heir to the Hyatt hotel fortune, has fueled speculation about a possible presidential campaign after revealing that he is working to make significant improvements to his health.
According to a new Forbes report, Pritzker’s fortune has reached approximately $4.2 billion, placing him on the magazine’s 2026 World’s Billionaires list.
His wealth rose by more than $500 million over the past year alone. Despite that increase, Pritzker slipped from 979th to 1,108th on the global billionaire ranking.
If elected president, Pritzker would become the second billionaire in a row to hold the office, following Donald Trump.
The Daily Mail has contacted Governor Pritzker’s office for comment.
Pritzker has also disclosed that he has taken a GLP-1 medication for the past two years after being diagnosed with diabetes.
The 61-year-old Democrat told CBS on Monday that he has lost 80 pounds since beginning the injections, adding that he feels “a whole lot different and a whole lot better.”
Illinois Governor JB Pritzker, a billionaire and rising Democratic star, has increased his net worth by more than $1 billion since taking office in 2019
If elected, Pritzker would become the second consecutive billionaire president after Donald Trump
The governor said he has long understood the risks associated with being overweight, particularly after his father died of a heart attack at the age of 39.
“He was actually quite an active person, even though he was overweight, and so he was on a tennis court and had a heart attack, and my mother was there, and he died in her arms,” Pritzker said, recalling his father.
However, Pritzker said the demands of public office contributed to further weight gain. His size has also made him the target of repeated mockery from Trump.
“Pritzker, I don’t know, he’s too busy eating,” Trump said at a 2024 presidential campaign rally. “He wants to eat all the time.”
Pritzker’s doctor prescribed the medication after blood tests conducted two years ago showed that he had diabetes.
“My doctor said, ‘Oh, no, you’ll never come off of it. You’re going to have to do this the rest of your life, and I recommend that you take a GLP-1,’” Pritzker recalled.
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He said he lost two pounds during his first week on the drug and quickly noticed a major change in his appetite.
“All of a sudden, on the third day, I was like, you know, actually, I don’t need to eat that thing,” Pritzker said.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis and Illinois Governor JB Pritzker attend a White House meeting in 2018
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‘But it was the strangest feeling. Now, I’m not suggesting everything changed in a week. It didn’t happen that way.’
GLP-1s mimic a naturally occurring gut hormone, helping regulate blood sugar and curb appetite by slowing digestion and increasing feelings of fullness. They are used to treat type 2 diabetes and, in some formulations, obesity.
Common brand names include Ozempic and Wegovy, which contain semaglutide, as well as Mounjaro and Zepbound, which contain tirzepatide, a related dual GIP/GLP-1 drug.
The governor announced that Illinois is covering GLP-1s on the state insurance plan for 55,000 civil servants and says that the drug will save money by preventing other diseases.
As well as the drug, Pritzker says that he takes a four-mile walk each morning along Lake Michigan to help keep the weight off.
Asked if he was working on his image ahead of a 2028 presidential run, Pritzker replied: ‘I’ve been driven my whole life to lose weight. The fact that I am now able to do it because this GLP-1 became available is truly, like, I mean, it’s something that has meant a lot to me.
‘I have not made any decisions about what I might do in the future. I can tell you I want to be the governor of the state of Illinois for a while longer, and I’m running for reelection.’
The latest Democratic 2028 polling puts Pritzker well behind the early front-runners, despite persistent speculation that the billionaire Illinois governor could mount a White House bid.
A September Bowling Green State University/YouGov poll had Kamala Harris on 17 percent, narrowly ahead of Pete Buttigieg on 16 percent, with Gavin Newsom and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez both on 14 percent. Pritzker was not among the candidates registering support in the poll’s leading tier.
A separate Harvard CAPS/Harris survey earlier this month placed Pritzker at 4 percent, behind Harris on 42 percent, Newsom on 18 percent, Buttigieg and Ocasio-Cortez on 9 percent apiece, and Josh Shapiro and Jon Ossoff on 7 percent.