REUTERS/Carlo Allegri
Businessman David Koch arrives at the Metropolitan Museum of Art Costume Institute Gala Benefit celebrating the opening of "Charles James: Beyond Fashion" in Upper Manhattan, New York May 5, 2014.
- Koch Industries confirmed Friday morning that 79-year-old David Koch, brother to 83-year-old Charles Koch, has died.
- The Koch family legacy includes the second-largest company in the US, Koch Industries, along with numerous political and policy institutions and billions of dollars spent toward advocacy, with an emphasis on conservative and libertarian policies including free trade and small government.
- After David's death, his nephew Chase, son of Charles, is in line to take his uncle's place as a key figure in the Koch network. As Politico Magazine predicted in December 2018, Chase will likely shift his family's legacy away from conservative policy toward broader libertarian ideals.
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The "Koch brothers" became a household name thanks to the conservative legacy, network, and $100 billion company spearheaded by David and Charles Koch. Now, Koch Industries has confirmed that 79-year-old David had died, after a 27-year battle with prostate cancer.
With 83-year-old Charles remaining at the helm of the second-largest company in the US, hundreds of billions of dollars, a massive GOP voting bloc, and an exhaustive list of advocacy and policy initiatives running on the Koch family's dime, it's time for another Koch to step up and succeed David in the family business.
With all of David's children currently under the age of 25, and Charles' eldest child, Elizabeth, uninvolved in the Koch Industries or network at large, that role falls to Chase Koch, 42, Charles' son.