Pritzker, J. B., 1965-

<p>Governor JB Pritzker was sworn in as the 43rd governor of the state of Illinois on January 14, 2019 and won election with the largest margin of victory over a sitting governor in more than a century.</p>

<p>After taking the oath of office, Governor Pritzker immediately began working with Democrats and Republicans to accomplish one of the most ambitious and consequential legislative agendas in state history. During his first session, the governor passed a balanced budget with a bipartisan majority, making historic investments in education and human services, while restoring fiscal stability to Illinois. The governor also won bipartisan passage for legalization of adult-use recreational cannabis and for Rebuild Illinois, the largest investment in state history to upgrade roads, bridges, rail, broadband, and universities in every corner of the state.</p>

<p>The governor took bold action, putting state government back on the side of working families by creating hundreds of thousands of jobs, raising the minimum wage to a living wage, making college more affordable for nearly 10,000 additional students, and advancing equal pay for women.</p>

<p>Jay Robert "J. B." Pritzker (born January 19, 1965) is an American businessman, philanthropist, and politician serving as the 43rd governor of Illinois. He is a private business owner based in Chicago and a managing partner and co-founder of the Pritzker Group, and a member of the Pritzker family that owns the Hyatt hotel chain. He has an estimated personal net worth of $3.4 billion.</p>

<p>Pritzker was the Democratic nominee for governor of Illinois in the 2018 gubernatorial election. He defeated Republican incumbent Bruce Rauner in the general election on November 6, 2018, and took office on January 14, 2019.</p>

<p>Pritzker was born and raised in Atherton, California, a member of the Pritzker family, a Jewish family prominent in business and philanthropy during the late 20th century. The Pritzkers are consistently named near the top of the Forbes "America's Richest Families" list since its 1982 inception. One of three children of Sue (née Sandel) and Donald Pritzker, his elder siblings are Penny Pritzker, former United States Secretary of Commerce, and Anthony Pritzker. Pritzker is named after both of his father's brothers, Jay and Bob. His grandfather Abe Pritzker, was a business lawyer.</p>