Billionaire Democratic donor Michael Sacks donated $150,000 to school board president candidate Jessica Biggs, the largest individual contribution to date in the November race, state records show.
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Sacks, who served as an adviser to former Mayor Rahm Emanuel, has become a lightning rod for criticism from the progressive Chicago Teachers Union and its allies, who have decried the influence of the ultrawealthy in the race.
The donation, made Oct. 2, came the same day Biggs received a $100,000 contribution from Paul Finnegan, a philanthropist and private equity executive.
Three candidates are running for Chicago’s first elected school board president: Biggs, a current elected school board member; former CTU deputy political director Hilario Dominguez; and attorney Victor Henderson.
The race is drawing heavy spending from CTU, other unions and pro-school choice groups opposed to CTU’s influence, all looking to shape the 21-member body that oversees Chicago Public Schools.
Sacks, the CEO of asset management firm GCM Grosvenor, has long been a behind-the-scenes fixture in Chicago politics. He chaired the local host committee for the Democratic National Convention in Chicago in 2024, and has also helped advance various Democratic causes in Illinois, including gun control and evidence-based school funding.
Last month, Sacks contributed $3.4 million to the independent expenditure committee affiliated with Common Ground Collective — a group that has opposed the influence of CTU and Mayor Brandon Johnson, a former union organizer. The super PAC has spent more than $2.6 million in the school board races so far, including more than $1.7 million on mailers and digital ads targeting CTU-backed candidates.
In a statement addressing his contribution to Biggs, Sacks cited his support for other Democratic lawmakers.
“I’ve been proud to support Democratic women running for office in Chicago, including Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle and State’s Attorney Kim Foxx, and I’m equally proud to join the Chicago Federation of Labor, SEIU, former CPS CEO Janice Jackson and broad coalition of labor unions and elected officials” backing Biggs, Sacks said through a spokesperson.
Still, Sacks has come under increasing scrutiny from CTU, which denounced his “mind-boggling spending” in an email last month. Union leadership has blamed him for policies they say hurt Black and Latino neighborhoods, including the 2013 mass school closures under Emanuel’s administration. Sacks has repeatedly said he opposes school closures.
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“It doesn’t just create an uneven playing field, it undermines the very values of democracy that so many have fought for,” Crystal Gardner, the union’s political director, said in a statement last month criticizing his spending.
Finnegan, the chairman of Madison Dearborn Partners, declined to comment. He has also donated to candidates in several district-level races and gave $419,000 to Common Ground’s super PAC in May.
To date, Biggs has raised about $729,000 this year, though more precise figures will be available later this week, when quarterly campaign finance reports are due. In a statement, Biggs pointed to her union endorsements and “the board coalition we’ve built in this campaign.”
“I’m also grateful to the hundreds of individual donors who have invested in my vision for a CPS focused on student success, not political games,” Biggs said.
Common Ground has not contributed directly to Biggs’ campaign, but its affiliated super PAC has spent just over $1 million on ads targeting Dominguez, who is endorsed by CTU. The Illinois Network of Charter Schools, a pro-school-choice group, also spent $450,000 on an ad opposing Dominguez.
Dominguez has raised $963,000, almost entirely from CTU. So far, the union has put the bulk of its resources behind the former organizer. CTU spent $4.3 million in the 2024 election, more than any other group, according to a Chalkbeat analysis. Union leadership attempted to raise member dues earlier this year, in part to bolster political spending.
Henderson has no major endorsements and has largely self-funded his campaign, raising $671,000, including $501,000 in loans.