Harvard Alumni Backed By Billionaires Lose Bid To Join Board


Billionaire investor Bill Ackman, who led a campaign criticizing Harvard University as it has been rocked by turmoil over practices related to antisemitism, plagiarism, and financial management, has failed to get four of his candidates on the ballot for a governing board of the Ivy League school, Svea Herbst-Bayliss reported for Reuters.

Ackman’s ignominious loss shows Harvard alumni want now of his meddling with the university.


One other candidate backed by Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg also failed to win a place on the ballot for Harvard's board of overseers.

The two men, who acted independently, threw support behind the candidates after Harvard President Claudine Gay resigned last month amid criticism of her handling of antisemitism on campus in the wake of Hamas' Oct. 7 attack on Israel and claims of plagiarism in her earlier academic career.

Ackman’s ignominious loss shows Harvard alumni want now of his meddling with the university.


The board of overseers is the school's second-highest governing body, with the power to approve or reject the hiring of Harvard's president. Each year, five seats on the 30-member board are up for election, and only Harvard alumni are eligible to vote.

Zoe Bedell, one of four candidates backed by Ackman, said she, Alec Williams, Logan Leslie and Julia Pollak received between 2,300 and 2,700 votes each. Sam Lessin, the candidate backed by Zuckerberg, said Harvard told him he received 2,901 votes. Securing a spot on the ballot required 3,238 votes.

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