Starbucks billionaire Howard Schultz just endorsed Biden after nearly running for president himself

• Former Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz publicly endorsed former Vice President Joe Biden for President in a letter published Monday.
• Schultz built a $4.2 billion fortune during his time at Starbucks, and pledged to donate at least some of it to Biden's campaign in the letter.
• Schultz considered running for president himself in 2019, but decided against it.

Howard Schultz is backing Biden for president.

The future of democracy in America is on the ballot in November as America continues to battle the coronavirus pandemic and faces increasing political polarization, Schultz wrote in a letter posted to his personal website and distributed to his email list Monday. Schultz said he and his wife Sherri plan to vote for and donate to the former vice president's campaign, as well as support nonpartisan efforts to ensure the fairness of the election.

"Trump's defeat is but the first step to repair and rebuild our country," Schultz wrote in the letter. "The months and years to follow are a time not for Democrats to exact revenge and enact a far-left agenda. Rather, it will be a vital opportunity to bring a scarred, divided nation together."

Schultz did two separate stints as the CEO of coffee giant Starbucks, first starting in 1986 and again in 2008, building himself a $4.2 billion fortune in the process. Schultz is now widely credited with growing Starbucks from a small chain in the Pacific Northwest to the international powerhouse it is today. Schultz has worked as a full-time philanthropist since departing Starbucks in 2017, he wrote in the letter.

Schultz nearly competed head to head against Biden for the White House, but decided against it in September 2019. At the time, Schultz said that he feared that his planned third bid would make it easier for President Trump to get reelected.

"While my exploration revealed that a run for office was not the best way for me to give back to a country that has given me so much, I continue to believe that our nation can live up to our ideals, and that we all must envision and fight for a new American future," Schultz wrote in his letter of support for Biden.

Regardless, the former CEO is a longtime admired of the former vice president, praising him in a March 2019 interview with Business Insider's Kate Taylor.

"I admire Vice President Biden," Schultz told Taylor. "I know him, I've traveled with him. How could I not admire him? He served the country for 40-plus years — he's a great man."