John Peter Ricketts (born August 19, 1964) is an American businessman and politician serving as the junior United States senator from Nebraska since 2023. A member of the Republican Party, he served as the 40th governor of Nebraska from 2015 to 2023.
Ricketts is the eldest son of Joe Ricketts, founder of TD Ameritrade. He is also, with other family members, a part owner of Major League Baseball's Chicago Cubs. Ricketts unsuccessfully ran for the U.S. Senate in 2006, losing to incumbent Ben Nelson. He ran for governor of Nebraska in 2014, and after narrowly winning the six-way Republican primary, won the general election. He was reelected in 2018. As governor, Ricketts approved various budgets and tax cuts and was a firm supporter of capital punishment; in 2018 the state carried out its first execution since 1997.
Ricketts left office after his second term as governor expired on January 5, 2023; a week later he was appointed to the U.S. Senate by his gubernatorial successor, Jim Pillen, to fill the vacancy created by Ben Sasse's resignation. He won the election to complete Sasse's term in the 2024 special election, and is running for reelection in 2026.
Early life Ricketts was born in Nebraska City on August 19, 1964, the oldest of four children of Joe Ricketts and Marlene (Volkmer) Ricketts. The family later moved to Omaha. Joe Ricketts founded First Omaha Securities in 1975, one of the first discount stockbrokers in the United States. It prospered, changing its name to Ameritrade, going public in 1997, and changing its name to TD Ameritrade after acquiring TD Waterhouse in 2006.Smith, Bryan. "The Ricketts Family Owns the Chicago Cubs: Who Are These People?". Chicago. June 24, 2013. Retrieved March 27, 2016.Reingold, Jennifer (September 21, 2012). "Joe Ricketts: The new billionaire political activist". Fortune. Retrieved August 20, 2017.Hauser, Jeanne (October 31, 2016). "Timeline: Milestones in TD Ameritrade history". Omaha World-Herald. Retrieved August 20, 2017. Marlene was a teacher.
Ricketts and his siblings, Tom, Laura, and Todd, all attended Westside High School in Omaha, from which Ricketts graduated in 1982. He attended the University of Chicago, receiving a Bachelor of Arts in biology in 1986 and a Master of Business Administration in marketing and finance in 1991.Rendell, Aren (January 23, 2015). "Q&A with Governor of Nebraska and Westside alum Pete Ricketts". Westside Wired. Archived from original March 15, 2015. Retrieved August 20, 2017.Greenberg, Jon. "Here's the pitch". University of Chicago Magazine. July–August 2010. Archived from original November 7, 2016. Retrieved August 20, 2017.
Business career After completing graduate school, Ricketts returned to Omaha. He worked for the Union Pacific Railroad for a year, then as a salesman for a Chicago environmental consultant. In 1993, he went to work for his father's business, initially in the call center for a few months, and subsequently appointed by his father to a number of executive positions, ultimately becoming the company's chief operating officer during his father's tenure as CEO. In a 2006 report, he stated his net worth at between $45million and $50million."About Governor Pete Ricketts". Office of Governor Pete Ricketts. Archived from original June 25, 2017. Retrieved August 20, 2017.Cordes, Henry J. (March 24, 2014). "Pete Ricketts traded business world for politics". Omaha World-Herald. Retrieved August 20, 2017.
In 1997, Ricketts married Susanne Shore. A native of Garden City, Kansas, Shore grew up in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and earned a bachelor's degree in English and then an MBA from Oklahoma State University. After a stint working for the dean of students at the University of South Dakota, she came to Omaha to complete a one-year course in nursing at Creighton University. At the time of her marriage to Ricketts, she was working as a nurse at St. Joseph's Hospital in Omaha. Ricketts and Shore have three children.Cordes, Henry J. (February 9, 2015). "Nebraska, meet your new First Lady". Omaha World-Herald. Retrieved August 20, 2017.Moore, Kathryn Cates (February 14, 2015). "Balancing family, new role are priorities for first lady Susanne Shore". Lincoln Journal Star. Retrieved August 20, 2017.
In 2006, Ricketts left Ameritrade to run for the U.S. Senate. After his loss to incumbent Ben Nelson, he returned to the company's board, remaining until the Ricketts family relinquished its board seats in 2016.Hubbard, Russell (December 5, 2013). "End of an era: Ricketts family members to relinquish TD Ameritrade board seats in 2016". Omaha World-Herald. Retrieved August 20, 2017.
In 2007, Ricketts co-founded, and became director and president of the Platte Institute for Economic Research, which he called a "free market think tank","Platte Institute Unveiled". Platte Institute. Archived from original June 2, 2016. Retrieved August 20, 2017. and which Nebraska newspapers have called "conservative".O'Hanlon, Kevin (January 1, 2014). "Report criticizes conservative Nebraska think tank". Retrieved August 20, 2017. He resigned from the organization in 2013 to concentrate on his 2014 gubernatorial campaign. From 2007 to 2012, Ricketts was a national committeeman for the Republican National Committee; from 2007 to 2013, he was a trustee of the American Enterprise Institute.2016–17 Nebraska Blue Book , p. 418. Retrieved August 20, 2017.
Sports In 2009, the Ricketts family trust bought the Chicago Cubs of Major League Baseball (MLB) from Tribune Media. Ricketts stepped down from the Cubs' board of directors in 2019 to focus on being governor.
As part owner of the Cubs, Ricketts has a 2016 World Series title to his credit, as they won the championship that year, defeating the Cleveland Indians."Front Office Directory". That's Cub (official Chicago Cubs website). Archived from original June 24, 2017. Retrieved August 20, 2017.
Governor of Nebraska (2015–2023)
Elections 2014
Ricketts ran in the 2014 Nebraska gubernatorial election. The incumbent, Dave Heineman, was term-limited.Tobias, Mike (September 19, 2013). "2014 Shaping Up As A Chaotic Election Year In Nebraska". NET (Nebraska PBS and NPR system). Retrieved August 20, 2017. Two candidates considered strong contenders for the Republican nomination withdrew by early 2013: Lieutenant Governor Rick Sheehy, who was embroiled in a scandal; and Speaker of the Legislature Mike Flood, whose wife had been diagnosed with cancer."Nebraska Governor's Race: What's Next?". WOWT News. February 3, 2013. Retrieved August 20, 2017. Ricketts joined the race in September 2013, at which point he and state auditor Mike Foley were regarded as the front-runners in a race that also included State Senators Charlie Janssen, Beau McCoy, and Tom Carlson.Walton, Don (September 8, 2013). "Ricketts looks forward to changing skeptics' minds". Lincoln Journal Star. Retrieved August 20, 2017. In February 2014, Janssen withdrew,Tsyver, Robynn (February 3, 2014). "Charlie Janssen abandons his bid for governor". Omaha World-Herald. Retrieved August 20, 2017. and Nebraska Attorney General Jon Bruning declared his candidacy. Despite his late entrance, Bruning supplanted Ricketts as the perceived front-runner.Tsyver, Robynn (February 9, 2014). "Attorney General Jon Bruning to run for Nebraska governor". Omaha World-Herald. Retrieved August 20,
Ricketts won the May 2014 primary with 26.6% of the vote to Bruning's 25.5%, McCoy's 20.9%, Foley's 19.2%, Carlson's 4.1%, and Omaha attorney Bryan Slone's 3.7%."Official Report of the Board of State Canvassers of the State of Nebraska: Primary Election, May 13, 2014". pp. 19–20. Retrieved August 20, 2017. In the general election, Ricketts faced Democratic nominee Chuck Hassebrook, a former member of the University of Nebraska Board of Regents and former director of the Center for Rural Affairs.Knapp, Fred (May 14, 2014). "Ricketts, Hassebrook Offer Contrasts In Race For Governor". NET (Nebraska PBS and NPR system). Retrieved August 20, 2017.Francis, Casey (November 2, 2015). "Are you ready to work for rural America?" Center for Rural Affairs. Retrieved August 20, 2017. Ricketts advocated tax reductions; Hassebrook argued that Ricketts's proposed cuts would primarily benefit the rich and deprive the state of funds for what he called needed public services. Ricketts opposed the proposed expansion of Medicaid under the provisions of the 2010 Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act; Hassebrook favored the expansion. Ricketts opposed an increase in the state's minimum wage; Hassebrook supported it.
Ricketts outspent Hassebrook by a considerable margin. In the last spending report filed before the election, he said he had loaned his campaign $930,000, and that the organization had spent about $6 million. Hassebrook reported expenditures of slightly more than $2.5 million.Quinlan, Mary Kay (November 2, 2014). "Campaign spending climbs for statewide executive branch races". KRVN radio. Retrieved August 20, 2017.
In the general election, Ricketts received 57.1% of the vote to Hassebrook's 39.2%. Libertarian Mark G. Elworth Jr. received 3.5%, and write-in votes accounted for 0.1%."Official Report of the Board of State Canvassers of the State of Nebraska: General Election, November 4, 2014". pp. 13–14. Retrieved August 20, 2017.
2018
On June 5, 2017, Ricketts announced his candidacy for reelection. During his speech, he said "lowering property taxes" would be his main concern if he were reelected. He also asked Nebraskans to "rehire" Lieutenant Governor Mike Foley. Ricketts was reelected on November 6 with 59.0% of the vote.
Tenure Ricketts was inaugurated as the 40th governor of Nebraska at the Nebraska State Capitol on January 8, 2015.Associated Press (January 8, 2015) – "Pete Ricketts Sworn in as 40th Governor of Nebraska". Kearney Hub. Retrieved January 26, 2015.Stoddard, Martha (January 8, 2015) – "Q&A: Pete Ricketts Offers Glimpse of His Vision for Nebraska". Omaha.com. Retrieved January 26, 2015.
2015 session Among the "most significant"Knapp, Fred (June 3, 2015). "2015 Legislature Leaves Its Mark On Nebraska". NET (Nebraska public radio and television). Retrieved June 4, 2015. actions the legislature took in its 2015 session were three bills that passed over Ricketts's veto. LB268 repealed the state's death penalty; LB623 reversed the state's previous policy of denying driver's licenses to people who were living illegally in the U.S. after being brought to the country as children, and who had been granted exemption from deportation under the Barack Obama administration's Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program; and LB610 increased the tax on gasoline to pay for repairs to roads and bridges.Walton, Don (May 28, 2015). "Senators override Ricketts' veto of Dreamers licenses". Lincoln Journal Star. Retrieved June 4, 2015.Pluhacek, Zach (May 7, 2015). "Gas tax hike gets Nebraska lawmakers' OK, governor's veto". Lincoln Journal Star. Retrieved June 4, 2015.