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Nathaniel Ryan Morris (born October 16, 1980) is an American businessman and political candidate.[1][2] He is a member of the Republican Party.

Raised in Louisville, he is a ninth-generation Kentuckian with family roots in Appalachia. After attending George Washington University, he later studied at the Princeton School of Public and International Affairs and the University of Oxford‘s Saïd Business School. In 2008, he founded Rubicon Technologies, a waste management company, which later went public in 2022.[3] He stepped down as CEO later that year but remained chairman, and separately founded Morris Industries, which he continues to lead.

In June 2025, Morris announced his candidacy for the 2026 U.S. Senate election in Kentucky, seeking to succeed retiring incumbent Mitch McConnell.

Early life and education

Originally from Lexington, Kentucky,[4] Morris grew up in Louisville with his single mother[5] and maternal grandparents; his mother worked multiple jobs and relied on food stamps to raise him.[6][7] A ninth-generation Kentuckian, Morris’s family descends from Morgan County, in Appalachia.[8][9] He was close to his grandfather, Lewis Sexton, who was a former president of the Ford plant United Auto Workers union in Louisville.[4][10] While attending Eastern High School,[5] Morris reportedly developed political aspirations after multiple spinal fractures derailed his hopes of a football career in the fall of 1996.[6][11]

Beginning in 1999, Morris attended George Washington University in Washington, D.C. on an academic scholarship,[10][11] where he studied international affairs, was a member of the Kappa Sigma fraternity, and was elected to Phi Beta Kappa.[12][13] Morris attended graduate school at the Princeton School of Public and International Affairs.[10][6][14] Morris also graduated from the University of Oxford‘s Said Business School.[15]

Political career

Morris is a Republican and is noted as a political fundraiser.[16] He has worked in a variety of roles for several Kentucky Republicans, including the U.S House of Representatives, the U.S. Senate and the U.S. Department of Labor.[11] Morris has raised funds and made political contributions for U.S. Senator Mitch McConnell.[17][18] Morris raised over $50,000 for President George W. Bush‘s 2004 reelection campaign.[11] Morris traveled with U.S. Senator Rand Paul to Israel in 2013 and raised money for his Senate and presidential campaigns,[4] becoming one of his top fund-raisers.[6] Paul wrote about Morris in his 2015 book, Taking a Stand: Moving Beyond Partisan Politics to Unite America. Morris is a political ally of U.S. Vice President JD Vance[19][20] and was among the biggest donors in Kentucky to Donald Trump‘s 2024 presidential campaign.[21]

2026 Senate campaign

In early 2025, Morris expressed an interest in possibly running for U.S. Senate or governor in Kentucky.[22][23][24] In February 2025, Morris criticized Kentucky Senator Mitch McConnell for voting against confirming Tulsi Gabbard and Pete Hegseth to Trump’s cabinet.[25][26] Later that month, Donald Trump Jr. expressed support for Morris’s public criticism of McConnell.[27] In March 2025, Time reported that Vice President JD Vance had encouraged Morris to run for the U.S. Senate in Kentucky.[20]

In June 2025, Morris announced that he would make a bid for the U.S. Senate on a podcast with Donald Trump Jr.,[28][29] and was endorsed by Charlie Kirk of Turning Point Action at an event in Shepherdsville.[30] Morris was also endorsed by U.S. Senators Jim Banks[31] and Bernie Moreno,[32] businessmen Vivek Ramaswamy and Richard Uihlein,[33] and political commentators Benny Johnson[34] and Austin Wade Petersen.[35]

In August 2025, Morris appeared at a political event at Fancy Farm with fellow GOP primary candidates for McConnell’s Senate seat, Andy Barr and Daniel Cameron. While all three candidates had served as interns for McConnell, Morris was the most critical of his former mentor, calling him a “decrepit old mob boss” and pledging to “trash Mitch McConnell’s legacy”.[36][37][38] The same month, former White House spokesman Sean Spicer commented that Morris had “the entire MAGA infrastructure behind him.”[39] In December 2025, Morris filed his paperwork in Frankfort with the Kentucky secretary of state, formally launching his campaign for the 2026 election.[40]

In January 2026, Elon Musk made a $10 million donation to the pro-Morris Fight for Kentucky super PAC, the largest single contribution Musk has given to a U.S. Senate candidate.[41][42]

In March 2026, Morris was endorsed by the Conservative Political Action Conference.[43]

Business

Morris founded Rubicon Technologies, formerly known as Rubicon Global, in 2008 after collaborating with a high school friend, Marc Spiegel.[14][6][10] The company is focused on business-to-business and municipal waste and recycling services. Rubicon became a public company in August 2022, listing on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol RBT.[44][45] Rubicon was only one of nine Kentucky companies to become public in the 230-year history of the New York Stock Exchange.[46] The company provided 100% free healthcare for employees.[46] A 2017 Bloomberg article described the company’s struggles with its technology and business model, as it attempted to distinguish itself from a traditional waste broker.[47] Rubicon’s shares closed at $6 on its first day of trading and later declined into the low $1 range in the months following the listing before rallying to close at $2.27.[48]

Morris stepped down as Rubicon’s CEO on October 13, 2022.[49] CTO Phil Rodoni succeeded Morris as CEO. As part of the transition, Morris retained a consulting role, was chairman, and a member of the board of directors.[50][51]

Morris founded Morris Industries in 2010, where he serves as chairman and CEO, headquartered in Lexington. Morris Industries acquired Republic Financial, an insurance company, in 2024.[52][53]

Morris has served as Entrepreneur in Residence at the University of Kentucky‘s Gatton College of Business and Economics since 2016.[54][55]

In 2019, Morris was inducted into the Kentucky Entrepreneur Hall of Fame,[56] the youngest person to receive this honor.[46]

Personal life

Morris married Jane Mosbacher on New Year’s Eve 2011. She is the daughter of Robert Mosbacher Jr., the head of the Overseas Private Investment Corporation under George W. Bush, and granddaughter of George H. W. Bush‘s commerce secretary Robert Mosbacher Sr.[4] Morris is a Christian and gave a sermon at Clays Hill Baptist Church after the assassination of Charlie Kirk.[57]

Morris is a trustee of the Morris Foundation, which provides college scholarships in Kentucky.[58][59]

Morris is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations[60] and the National Society of Sons of the American Revolution.

Morris was awarded an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree from the University of Pikeville in 2021.[61]

References

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  59. ^ “Scholarships Available”. Blue Grass Community Foundation. Archived from the original on July 7, 2024. Retrieved November 24, 2025.
  60. ^ “Council on Foreign Relations Membership Roster”. www.cfr.org. Archived from the original on February 12, 2019. Retrieved June 25, 2025.
  61. ^ Charles, Amy (April 30, 2021). “UPIKE honored the class of 2021 with in-person commencement ceremonies | UPIKE”. Archived from the original on December 5, 2025. Retrieved February 13, 2026.