Laura Ricketts

Laura Marie Ricketts (born December 15, 1967) is an American political activist and former attorney who is co-owner of the Chicago Cubs and the Chicago Red Stars.

Ricketts is also a board member of Lambda Legal and the Housing Opportunities for Women organization.

Ricketts' ownership stake in the Cubs makes her the first openly gay owner of a major-league sports franchise.

Ricketts and her three siblings grew up in Omaha, Nebraska.

She is the daughter of John Joseph ("Joe") and Marlene Margaret Ricketts (née Volkmer).

Ricketts' father, J. Joseph Ricketts, founded Ameritrade when Laura was age 7.

J. Joseph Ricketts let it be known that he wanted his children to establish themselves through their own hard work and would not be allowed to join TD Ameritrade until they reached the age of thirty.

Ricketts is a former corporate lawyer.

Ricketts received her bachelor's degree from the University of Chicago in 1989 and her Juris Doctor from the University of Michigan Law School in 1998.

Laura talks of her own struggle to come out; "I came out to my family I would say early to mid 90s. I think for a long time I wasn't really out to myself, growing up in Omaha, Neb., to a Catholic conservative family. It took me a while to come out to myself and not long after that I came out to them. I think that it really couldn't have been a better experience. They were all immediately supportive. ... I have been really really fortunate in that regard."

In 1999, Ricketts was admitted to the Illinois State Bar Association; her license to practice law expired in 2015.

On July 6, 2009, the Chicago Tribune reported that the Ricketts family had reached an agreement with the Tribune Company to purchase the Cubs, Wrigley Field, and 25% of Comcast SportsNet Chicago.

Final approval came by a unanimous vote of the other MLB owners in an October 6, 2009, conference call.

Ricketts was a top bundler for Barack Obama's re-election campaign during the 2012 presidential election.

In 2013, Ricketts was inducted into the Chicago Gay and Lesbian Hall of Fame.

Ricketts is a Democrat, unlike her parents and her siblings (who are all notable Republicans).

Ricketts is liberal and an LGBTQ activist.

Ricketts founded and served as the chairwoman of LPAC, an LGBTQ Super PAC.

On June 6, 2015, Ricketts married Brooke Skinner.

Skinner is the Chief Experience Officer at Cars.com.

Their wedding was officiated by Jim Bennett, the Midwest Director of Lambda Legal.

Ricketts is one of four children.

Older brother Pete Ricketts is a former Governor of Nebraska and the current junior US Senator from Nebraska.

Her brother Tom is chairman of the Chicago Cubs, and the chief executive officer of Incapital LLC.

He is also a director of TD Ameritrade Holding Corporation.

Tom, Laura, and their youngest brother, Todd, live within blocks of each other in Wilmette, Illinois.

In announcing LPAC's April 2015 endorsement of Clinton, Ricketts said, "We are proud to endorse Hillary Clinton as she begins her run for the White House. Hillary is an unyielding advocate for LGBTQ women. Our endorsement today represents LPAC’s strong support of her candidacy."

Ricketts was a top bundler for the Clinton campaign.

Ricketts was also a supporter of Hillary Clinton's 2016 presidential campaign in the Democratic primaries and the general election.

Clinton herself personally attended a campaign fundraiser that Laura and her wife Brooke hosted at their Wilmette home in July 2016.

In addition to supporting Clinton as a donor and fundraiser, Ricketts supported several Democrats running for other offices in the 2016 elections.

Ricketts gave personal donations that year to Jan Schakowsky's congressional re-election campaign, Tammy Duckworth's senate campaign, Maggie Hassan's senate campaign, and Russ Feingold's senate campaign.

Ricketts also donated to the Hillary Victory Fund, a joint fundraising committee benefiting both state parties and the Clinton campaign.

Ricketts served as an Illinois superdelegate to the 2016 Democratic National Convention.

Rickets served as a co-chair of the campaign finance committee of Jesse Ruiz's campaign for the Democratic nomination in the 2018 Illinois attorney general election.

During Chicago's 2019 mayoral election, Ricketts endorsed and became a co-chair of Susana Mendoza's campaign in the first round.

After Mendoza was eliminated, Ricketts backed Lori Lightfoot in the election's runoff.

She supported Lightfoot in the 2023 Chicago mayoral election, with Ricketts and her wife both having been named in April 2022 to serve as a finance co-chair of Lightfoot's reelection campaign.

Ricketts supported Joe Biden during the 2020 United States presidential election.

After his victory, she donated $250,000 to the inaugural committee planning the Biden's inauguration.