Rahm Emanuel, U.S. Ambassador to Japan, Built His Net Worth as a Politician

U.S. Ambassador to Japan Rahm Emanuel says the recent assassination of Japan’s former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was a “shock to the system.” Emanuel, who has been Ambassador to Japan since December 2021, built his net worth as a lifelong politician and Democrat.

According to Celebrity Net Worth, Emanuel’s net worth is estimated at $14 million. He earns between $150,000 and $500,000 annually through his salary, dividends, speaking fees, and capital gains, and has as much as $17 million in assets.

Emanuel has made a career as a Democratic politician and adviser to former Presidents Bill Clinton and Barack Obama. Before he was appointed to the ambassador role, Emanuel served eight years as the mayor of Chicago and three terms representing Illinois in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Born and raised in the Chicago area, Emanuel dabbled in everything from ballet to volunteering for the Israel Defense Forces during the Gulf War in 1991. After graduating from the Evanston School of Ballet, Emanuel received a scholarship to the esteemed Joffrey Ballet when he was just 17, The Washington Post reports. However, he turned the scholarship down and instead went to study dance at Sarah Lawrence College in New York.

Emanuel continued to dance into adulthood as he got married, had children, and worked as a senior aide to former President Clinton, The Washington Post reports. Although Emanuel quit dancing long before he became the mayor of Chicago, he was nicknamed “Tiny Dancer” during his tenure.

“I love dance as an art form,” Emanuel told The Washington Post in 2011. “Not many other art forms combine performance, music, lighting, costume, plus you have the staging geometry and you have the discipline that only the body can interpret.”

In 1985, Emanuel received a master’s degree in speech and communications from Northwestern University. His career in politics started even before he graduated when he went to work for the consumer rights organization Illinois Public Action.

He worked on several campaigns for Democratic candidates until, in 1992, he became the finance director for Clinton’s presidential campaign. After Clinton was elected, Emanuel became one of his senior advisers, a role he held between 1993 and 1998. He reportedly earned the nickname “Rahmbo” when he worked in the Clinton White House for his “take-no-prisoners” style.

Emanuel was elected to represent Illinois’ 5th congressional district in the House of Representatives in 2002, replacing Rod Blagojevich, who resigned to become governor of Illinois. He served on the House for six years.

After Obama was elected President in 2008, he appointed Emanuel as his White House chief of staff. Emanuel worked in the White House until October 2010, when he resigned to pursue the Chicago mayoral seat.

Emanuel met his wife, Ann Rule, on a blind date in 1990, the Chicago Sun-Times reports. Rule grew up in Ohio to Republican parents. The couple was married in 1994, and they have three children.