| Article Highlights |
| Ross Perot was a business tycoon and a politician. He died of leukemia in 2019. As per Forbes, his net worth was $4.1 Billion at the time of his death. He was one of the richest US presidential candidates ever. |
Henry Ross Perot Sr. better known as Ross Perot was an American businessman and politician. He was the founder and CEO of two major companies in the US, Perot Systems, and Electronic Data Systems.
More than his career as a businessman he is known for his political ambitions and two presidential campaigns. According to Forbes, Ross Perot’s Net Worth at the time of his death in 2019 was $4.1 Billion.
Today, his children, especially Henry Ross Perot Jr. are managing his legacy. The journey of Ross Perot was full of inspiring moments. Starting his career as a salesman for IBM he went on to build an empire.
Profile Summary of Ross Perot
| Name | Henry Ross Perot Sr. |
| Profession | Businessman and Politician |
| Nationality | American |
| Date of Birth | June 27, 1930 |
| Date of Death | July 9, 2019 |
| Political Party | Independent (before 1995) Reform (1995–2000) Republican (2000–2019) |
| Net Worth | $4.1 Billion |
Assets, Sources of Income, and Net Worth in 2024
A few months before his death, Forbes ranked Ross Perot the 167th richest person in the United States. He was not fortunate enough to get much generational wealth. In a true sense, he was a self-made man.
He founded the Electronic Data system in 1962 and made it one of the top companies in the US. Later, in 1986, he sold it to GM making $1.5 Billion.
He also established a computer service company called Perot Systems before selling it to Dell Computer for $3.9 Billion. He made $800 million from this deal.
Ross Perot was also an investor in a real estate development company called Hillwood. It was founded by Ross Perot’s son Henry Ross Perot Jr.
Here is year-by-year growth in Ross Perot’s net worth as reported by Forbes.
| 2010 | $3.3 Billion |
| 2011 | $3.4 Billion |
| 2012 | $3.5 Billion |
| 2013 | $3.5 Billion |
| 2014 | $3.5 Billion |
| 2015 | $3.7 Billion |
| 2016 | $3.8 Billion |
| 2017 | $4 Billion |
| 2018 | $4.1 Billion |
| 2019 | $4.1 Billion |
Also Check Richest Politicians in the World
Early Life and Struggle
Ross Perot was born on June 27, 1930, in Texarkana, Texas. The name of his father and mother was Gabriel Ross Perot and Lula May respectively. He attended a local private school in Patty Hill and later went on to join Texas High School in Texarkana in 1947.
Hayer McClerkin who was a speaker of the Arkansas House of Representatives was Perot’s childhood friend.
He attended Texarkana Junior College and enrolled in the United States Naval Academy in 1949. He left the Navy in 1957 and became an IBM salesman. A few years later, he established his own venture Electronic Data Systems (EDS).
EDS went public in 1968 and its stock value rose from $16 to $160 within days. At that time, Fortune, an American global magazine, named him the “fastest, richest Texan” in its 1968 cover story.
| Place of Birth | Texarkana, Texas, US |
| Zodiac Sign | Cancer |
| Father | Gabriel Ross Perot |
| Mother | Lula May |
| School | Texas High School |
| College | Texarkana Junior College |
| Wife | Margot Birmingham |
| Children | 5 |
| Daughter | 4 |
| Son | 1 |
| Race/ Ethnicity | White |
| Height | 5 feet and 5 inches (166 cm) |
| Weight | 65 kg |
| Hair Color | Gray |
| Eye Color | Brown |
Success in Business
Perot was able to mint more than a billion dollars when General Motors (GM) bought controlling rights in EDS in 1984. He then founded Perot Systems in 1988 in Plano, Texas. It was a computer service company which was acquired by Dell in September 2009.
Ross Perot was also an investor. He was one of the first angel investors in NeXT, a company founded by Steve Jobs when he lost the power struggle at Apple. He also invested in Bill Gates’s Microsoft.
Political Career
Ross Perot ran for the US President twice, once in 1992 and 1996. He was a major political figure in the United States in the mid-1990s. He also founded the Reform Party of the United States of America (RPUSA).
In the 1992 election, he was able to gather only 18.9% of the popular vote with no electoral college vote. Still, he was the most successful non-major-party presidential candidate since Theodore Roosevelt in the 1912 election.
Perot’s 1996 campaign was not very successful. Although he tried raising many issues like the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), he was able to get only 8% of popular votes.
According to political analysts, Perot’s bad performance in a debate with then-Vice President Al Gore ended his political career.
Wife and Children
Ross Perot was married to his wife Margot Perot. She was a graduate of Goucher College. They had five children – Ross Jr, Nancy, Suzanne, Carolyn, and Katherine. Ross and Margot were also blessed with 19 grandchildren.
Awards and Achievements
| Award | Year |
| Golden Plate Award of the American Academy of Achievement | 1970 |
| Hall of Great Westerners of the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum | 1985 |
| Winston Churchill Award | 1986 |
| Oak Cliff Lions Clubs’ “Humanitarian Award | 1980 |
| Roger Horchow Award for Greatest Public Service by a Private Citizen | 1986 |
| U.S. Business Hall of Fame | 1988 |
| Honorary Green Beret at the John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center and School | 2009 |
| Honorary chairman of the OSS Society | 2009 |
| Sylvanus Thayer Award by the United States Military Academy at West Point | 2009 |
| Distinguished Leadership Award from the Command and General Staff College Foundation | 2010 |
| William J. Donovan Award from the OSS Society | 2010 |
Death
Ross Perot died due to leukemia in Dallas, Texas on July 9th, 2019, just two weeks prior to his 89th birthday. His memorial was organized at Highland Park United Methodist Church with 1300 invited guests. He was buried at the Sparkman-Hillcrest Memorial Park Cemetery.
Frequently Asked Questions
His son Henry Ross Perot Jr. is managing all his businesses.
Yes, he was a retired naval officer.
Yes, he was a philanthropist. He established the Perot Foundation to contribute toward various humanitarian programs.
Yes, Margot Birmingham Perot is still alive.
He started the Electronic Data System by investing a $1,000 check given by her wife.
