Political Rivals, Real Estate Partners? JB Pritzker Buys Ken Griffin's $19M Gold Coast Condos

Money talks, even between political rivals. After years of multimillion-dollar campaign battles and public spats, Illinois Governor JB Pritzker purchased two luxury condos from Citadel founder Ken Griffin at Chicago’s exclusive No. 9 Walton.

The $19 million deal, executed through a Delaware LLC called Chicago Skyline Properties, hands Pritzker the building’s top two floors – a combined 15,000 square feet of unfinished space complete with plans for a private rooftop pool and pavilion. For Griffin, who relocated to Florida two years ago, the sale marks a $15 million loss on properties he purchased for $34 million in 2017, according to The Real Deal.

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“The Governor and first lady recently purchased a condo in Chicago. They love the city and Chicago has been home to them for many years,” a Pritzker spokesperson told the Chicago Tribune, keeping mum on the details of this headline-grabbing transaction.

The real estate deal adds to the duo’s contentious history. Griffin poured $20 million into opposing Pritzker’s 2018 gubernatorial campaign before spending $54 million to defeat the governor’s proposed graduated-rate income tax in 2020, the Real Deal reported. The hedge fund billionaire later backed Republican challengers to Pritzker’s 2022 reelection bid with $74 million in contributions.

Their rivalry turned personal when Griffin branded Pritzker “a shameless master of personal tax avoidance” in a companywide email. The governor fired back by labeling Griffin one of “the nation’s biggest MAGA Republican billionaires,” the Tribune noted.

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According to the Tribune, the sale ranks fourth among Chicago’s priciest residential deals, behind Griffin’s original $58.75 million purchase at No. 9 Walton, German Larrea’s $20.56 million St. Regis Tower penthouse and Bryan Cressey’s $20 million Trump Tower acquisition. The building has become a billionaire magnet, with Crown family scion Steven Crown dropping $17.4 million on the 34th floor in 2022.

Griffin, who recently said he is open to selling a minority stake in Citadel, still holds two additional floors in the building. The 36th floor is currently listed at $8.5 million, while the 35th floor remains off the market. The transaction represents just a fraction of his Chicago property sell-off since he relocated Citadel’s headquarters to Miami, citing concerns about local crime rates.

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Meanwhile, Pritzker owns two adjacent Gold Coast mansions purchased for $18.175 million in 2006.

According to Forbes, Griffin, worth $47.1 billion, maintains deep Chicago ties despite his Florida exodus through more than $600 million in philanthropic contributions to local institutions, including a $125 million donation that added his name to the Museum of Science and Industry.

The former political adversaries’ unlikely real estate partnership suggests that in the world of ultra-luxury property, business always wins out over politics.

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