History of Vivek Ramaswamy in Timeline
Vivek Ganapathy Ramaswamy is an American entrepreneur and politician. He founded the pharmaceutical company Roivant Sciences in 2014, serving as CEO until 2021. He entered national politics as a presidential candidate in the 2024 Republican primaries. After withdrawing, he endorsed Donald Trump. Ramaswamy is now the Republican nominee for Governor of Ohio for the 2026 elections with endorsements from President Trump and the Ohio Republican Party.
4 hours ago : Mamdani trolls Ramaswamy after Knicks win, NYC to host viewing parties.
Zohran Mamdani seemingly trolled Vivek Ramaswamy after the New York Knicks reached the NBA Finals. NYC plans viewing parties anticipating the event and victory.
August 9, 1985: Vivek Ramaswamy's Birth
On August 9, 1985, Vivek Ganapathy Ramaswamy was born. He later became an entrepreneur, politician, and founder of Roivant Sciences.
2003: Graduated as Valedictorian
In 2003, Ramaswamy graduated as valedictorian from St. Xavier High School in Cincinnati.
2004: Voted for Michael Badnarik
In 2004, Ramaswamy said that he voted for Michael Badnarik, the Libertarian Party presidential nominee.
2007: Joined QVT Financial
From 2007, Ramaswamy worked at the hedge fund QVT Financial.
2007: Co-founded Campus Venture Network
In 2007, Ramaswamy and Travis May co-founded Campus Venture Network, which created a social networking website for aspiring student entrepreneurs.
2007: Graduated from Harvard University
In 2007, Ramaswamy graduated from Harvard University with a bachelor's degree in biology.
2008: Did not vote in presidential elections
In 2008, Ramaswamy did not vote in the presidential elections. He described himself as apolitical during this period.
2009: Sale of Campus Venture Network
In 2009, Campus Venture Network, co-founded by Ramaswamy, was sold to the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation.
2011: Awarded Soros Fellowship
In 2011, Ramaswamy was awarded a postgraduate fellowship to attend law school by the Paul & Daisy Soros Fellowships for New Americans.
2012: Did not vote in presidential elections
In 2012, Ramaswamy did not vote in the presidential elections. He described himself as apolitical during this period.
2013: Earned Juris Doctor from Yale University
In 2013, Ramaswamy earned a Juris Doctor degree from Yale University.
December 2014: Axovant Purchased Intepirdine Patent
In December 2014, Axovant, a Roivant subsidiary, purchased the patent for intepirdine from GlaxoSmithKline for $5 million, after it had failed four clinical trials.
2014: Founded Roivant Sciences
In 2014, Ramaswamy founded Roivant Sciences after working as an investment partner at a hedge fund.
2014: Left QVT Financial
In 2014, Ramaswamy left QVT Financial, where he was a partner and co-managed the firm's biotech portfolio.
March 2015: Chairman of OnCore and Tekmira
In March 2015, Ramaswamy was chairman of OnCore Biopharma and maintained his position at Tekmira Pharmaceuticals after the two companies merged.
2015: Forbes Cover and Capital Gains
In 2015, Ramaswamy appeared on the cover of Forbes, touted Axovant's IPO, and claimed over $37 million in capital gains after selling shares in Roivant to Viking Global Investors. He claimed his company would be the "Berkshire Hathaway of drug development".
2015: Marriage to Apoorva Tewari
In 2015, Vivek Ramaswamy married Apoorva Tewari, a laryngologist and surgeon, after they met at Yale.
2016: Did not vote in presidential elections
In 2016, Ramaswamy did not vote in the presidential elections. He described himself as apolitical during this period.
2016: Donated to Dena Grayson's Campaign
In 2016, Ramaswamy donated $2,700 to the campaign of Dena Grayson, a Florida Democrat running for Congress.
September 2017: Intepirdine Trial Failure
In September 2017, Axovant announced that intepirdine failed in its large clinical trial, causing the company's value to plunge by 75% in one day.
2017: Roivant Partnered with CITIC and SoftBank Invested
In 2017, Roivant partnered with CITIC Private Equity of the Chinese state-owned CITIC Group to form Sinovant, and SoftBank invested $1.1 billion in Roivant.
2017: No Public Position on Trump Tax Cuts
In 2017, Vivek Ramaswamy took no public position on the Trump tax cuts.
2018: No Regrets about Axovant Handling
In 2018, Ramaswamy said he had no regrets about how Axovant handled the drug intepirdine, despite its clinical trial failure.
2018: Roivant Foundation Created
In 2018, an earlier iteration of Roivant Social Ventures (RSV), the Roivant Foundation, was created.
2019: Sale of Subsidiaries
In 2019, Roivant sold its stake in five subsidiaries to Sumitomo Dainippon Pharma, resulting in Ramaswamy making $175 million in capital gains, and giving Sumitomo Dainippon a 10% stake in Roivant.
2020: Donated to Ohio Republican Party
From 2020 to 2023, Ramaswamy donated $30,000 to the Ohio Republican Party.
2020: Co-founded Chapter Medicare
In 2020, Ramaswamy co-founded Chapter Medicare, a Medicare navigation platform, and participated in the Ohio COVID-19 Response Team.
2020: Supported Donald Trump
In 2020, Ramaswamy supported Donald Trump for the 2020 presidential election, marking a shift towards political involvement.
2020: Roivant Social Ventures Established
In 2020, Roivant Sciences, under Ramaswamy's CEO leadership, established a nonprofit social-impact arm, Roivant Social Ventures (RSV).
2020: Vegetarian Stance
In 2020, Vivek Ramaswamy wrote, "I believe it is wrong to kill sentient animals for culinary pleasure."
2020: Voter Disenfranchisement Proposal
In 2020, nearly 9% of voters in the general election were under 25. Vivek Ramaswamy favored raising the standard voting age from 18 to 25, which would require repealing the 26th Amendment to the Constitution.
2020: Claims of Election Theft and Great Replacement
Vivek Ramaswamy asserted that "big tech" played a role in stealing the 2020 election, referring to the Hunter Biden laptop story being suppressed, while also claiming that the "Great Replacement" conspiracy theory was "the Democratic Party's platform."
January 6, 2021: Condemns Capitol Attack
In the days after the January 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol, Vivek Ramaswamy condemned the attack, but argued that social media bans on Trump violate the First Amendment.
January 2021: Stepped Down as CEO
In January 2021, Ramaswamy stepped down as CEO of Roivant Sciences, becoming executive chairman.
August 2021: Publishes Woke Inc
In August 2021, Vivek Ramaswamy's book, the New York Times bestseller, "Woke Inc", described his view of the so-called "modern woke-industrial complex".
November 2021: Registered to Vote as Unaffiliated Republican
In November 2021, Ramaswamy registered to vote in Franklin County, Ohio, as "unaffiliated", but described himself as a Republican.
2021: Owned House in Butler County, Ohio
As of 2021, Vivek Ramaswamy owned a house in Butler County, Ohio.
2021: Authored "Woke, Inc."
In 2021, Ramaswamy wrote his first book, "Woke Inc", and appeared on cable networks to argue against left-wing "woke" policies. "Woke, Inc." is a book by Vivek Ramaswamy.
2021: Stepped down as CEO of Roivant Sciences
In 2021, Vivek Ramaswamy stepped down as the chief executive officer of Roivant Sciences.
September 2022: Published "Nation of Victims"
In September 2022, Ramaswamy published his second book, "Nation of Victims: Identity Politics, the Death of Merit, and the Path Back to Excellence", before announcing his presidential candidacy. "Nation of Victims" is a book written by Vivek Ramaswamy.
October 2022: Meetings with South Carolina Lawmakers
In October 2022, Ramaswamy held closed-door meetings with South Carolina lawmakers to pitch Strive to manage the state's pension funds, arranged by state treasurer Curtis Loftis.
2022: Considered running for U.S. Senate in Ohio
In 2022, Ramaswamy briefly considered running in the U.S. Senate election in Ohio.
2022: Co-founded Strive Asset Management
In 2022, Ramaswamy co-founded Strive Asset Management, an investment firm.
2022: Launched DRLL Fund
In 2022, Strive launched its flagship fund, the exchange-traded fund DRLL, as an "anti-woke" energy sector index fund. Ramaswamy stated Strive would encourage energy companies to maximize success regardless of political or social agendas.
2022: Urges Chevron to Increase Oil Production
In 2022, Vivek Ramaswamy urged Chevron to increase oil production and criticized its support for a carbon tax. Ramaswamy's company holds a 0.02% stake in Chevron.
February 2023: Resigned from Strive
In February 2023, Ramaswamy resigned as executive chairman of Strive to focus on his presidential campaign.
February 2023: Resigned as Chair of Roivant
In February 2023, Ramaswamy stepped down as chair of Roivant to focus on his presidential campaign.
February 21, 2023: Ramaswamy Announces Presidential Candidacy
On February 21, 2023, Vivek Ramaswamy announced his candidacy for the Republican nomination for president of the United States in the 2024 election on Tucker Carlson Tonight and publicly released 20 years of his income tax returns.
May 2023: Campaign Admits to Wikipedia Edits
In May 2023, Ramaswamy's campaign admitted that he had paid an editor to alter his Wikipedia biography before announcing his candidacy, but denied that the payment for edits was politically motivated.
June 2023: Criticism over Lobbying
In June 2023, after The Post and Courier reported on Ramaswamy's meetings with South Carolina lawmakers in October 2022, the sessions faced criticism as unregistered lobbying.
November 2023: Condemns Azerbaijan's Military Action
In November 2023, Vivek Ramaswamy condemned Azerbaijan's military operation against the Armenian population of Nagorno-Karabakh and said that the U.S. should block all its military aid to Azerbaijan.
2023: Donated to Ohio Republican Party
From 2020 to 2023, Ramaswamy donated $30,000 to the Ohio Republican Party.
2023: Axovant Dissolved
In 2023, Axovant, which had attempted to reinvent itself as a gene therapy company, dissolved.
2023: Wealth Before Law School
In 2023, Ramaswamy stated he had a net worth of around $15 million before graduating from law school due to his finance, pharmaceutical, and biotech activities.
2023: Promises to Pardon Trump
In 2023, after Trump was indicted on federal criminal charges, Vivek Ramaswamy promised to pardon Trump if elected president.
2023: Owned House in Columbus, Ohio
In 2023, the only real estate Vivek Ramaswamy reported owning was a house in Columbus, Ohio, in Franklin County.
2023: Commented on Martin Shkreli
In a 2023 speech and in his book Woke Inc., Ramaswamy called Martin Shkreli both "brilliant" and a pathological liar, criticizing the U.S. Department of Justice for prosecuting Shkreli.
May 2024: Acquired Stake in BuzzFeed
In May 2024, Ramaswamy acquired a 7.7% stake in BuzzFeed, later increased to 8.4%, becoming the second-largest Class A shareholder and suggested hiring conservative pundits and new directors.
2024: Ramaswamy Tasked to Lead DOGE
A week after the 2024 election, President-elect Donald Trump announced that Ramaswamy and Elon Musk had been tasked to lead the newly proposed Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). However, Ramaswamy never worked with the DOGE team during the Trump administration, as on Inauguration Day, he dropped out of DOGE.
2024: Presidential Candidacy and Endorsement
In 2024, Vivek Ramaswamy entered national politics as the youngest presidential candidate in the Republican primaries, later withdrawing his bid and endorsing Donald Trump for the 2024 presidential election.
2024: Ramaswamy Ends Campaign and Endorses Trump
In January of 2024, after finishing fourth in the Iowa caucuses, Vivek Ramaswamy ended his campaign and endorsed Donald Trump. For the remainder of the 2024 U.S. presidential election, Ramaswamy served the Trump campaign as a political surrogate.
February 15, 2025: Files to Enter 2026 Ohio Gubernatorial Election
On February 15, 2025, Vivek Ramaswamy filed to enter the 2026 Ohio gubernatorial election and received an endorsement from President Donald Trump.
May 9, 2025: Receives Endorsement of Ohio Republican Party
On May 9, 2025, Vivek Ramaswamy received the official endorsement of the Ohio Republican Party's State Central Committee for his gubernatorial run.
January 6, 2026: Announces Running Mate
On January 6, 2026, Vivek Ramaswamy announced that he had selected Ohio State Senate President Rob McColley as his running mate for lieutenant governor.
May 5, 2026: Wins Republican Primary
On May 5, 2026, in the Republican primary, Vivek Ramaswamy defeated Casey Putsch, 82.5% to 17.5%.
May 2026: Forbes Estimates Ramaswamy's Net Worth
In May 2026, Forbes estimated Ramaswamy's net worth to be $2.7 billion, primarily derived from his biotech and financial businesses.
2026: Focus on Ohio Gubernatorial Campaign
In 2024, Vivek Ramaswamy dropped out of DOGE to focus on a potential 2026 Ohio gubernatorial campaign due to friction with DOGE leadership and staff.
2026: Republican Nominee for Governor of Ohio
In 2026, Vivek Ramaswamy became the Republican nominee for Governor of Ohio, receiving endorsements from President Trump and the Ohio Republican Party.
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