In September 2014, Darrell West published a Billionaire Political Power Index based on his Brookings Institution Press book, Billionaires: Reflections on the Upper Crust. It examined the political influence individuals of great wealth, ranking their power based on a number of factors including campaign expenditures, activism through nonprofit organizations and foundations, holding public office, media ownership, policy thought leadership, and behind-the-scenes influence.

He has updated this index to account for billionaires' more recent election activism, campaign donations, and influence leading up to the 2014 midterms. There are several individuals who have moved up the list: Peter Thiel, Bob Mercer, Joe Ricketts, Paul Singer, Jim Simons, and David Geffen. Others have seen their rankings drop: Penny Pritzker, Warren Buffett, Peter Peterson, Donald Trump, and Alice Walton.

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#	Names
1	Charles & David Koch
2	Michael Bloomberg
3	Tom Steyer
4	Sheldon Adelson
5	Rupert Murdoch
6	John "Joe" Ricketts
7	Robert "Bob" Mercer
8	Paul Singer
9	Peter Thiel
10	George and Jonathan Soros
11	John and Laura Arnold
12	Bill and Melinda Gates
13	Family of the late Peter Lewis
14	Mark and Priscilla Zuckerberg
15	Warren Buffett
16	Jeff and MacKenzie Bezos
17	Pierre and Pamela Omidyar
18	James "Jim" Simons
19	David Geffen
20	Penny Pritzker
21	Marc Andreessen
22	Peter Peterson
23	Donald Trump
24	Alice Walton

View the previous version: http://www.brookings.edu/research/interactives/2014/billionaires-us-political-power-index

The findings, interpretations and conclusions posted on Brookings.edu are solely those of the authors and not of The Brookings Institution, its officers, staff, board, funders, or organizations with which they may have a relationship.

Interactive created by Kevin Hawkins.