By
Mayowa Adebajo
April 11th, 2024
The PAC boasts of several House seats and has spent over $10 million supporting crypto-oriented candidates ahead of the November primaries.
GMI PAC, a political movement enjoying the backing of leading crypto participants, has spent over $10 million in the ongoing midterm primaries. The PAC is a Political Action Committee that seeks to support pro-crypto candidates who run for elections in the US. GMI is an acronym that means “Gonna Make It,” a common saying in the crypto community.
The super PAC is keenly focused on the 2024 elections, claiming success across several House and Senate seats. However, other factors such as incumbency and party endorsements were also instrumental to the success. According to a representative for the movement, the PAC has successfully backed 15 candidates. The representative informed The Block that the PAC also recently helped Democrat Seth Magaziner win a primary in Rhode Island.
GMI PAC Strategically Supporting Both Democrats and Republicans
Democrat Glenn Ivey, who won in a closely contested primary in Maryland, is one of the notable GMI PAC candidates. Although Ivey did not state whether he owns digital assets, he noted on his campaign website that:
“America should be careful not to cede global financial and technology leadership in this sector by making it impossible for home-grown innovation to flourish.”
Ivey promises to work closely with industry experts and other leaders in Congress to ensure that regulation is thoughtful and even-handed. The Democrat stated on his website that he opposes efforts to ban crypto. Ivey explained that it is important not to over-regulate emerging technologies that have the potential to drive the American economy.
GMI also supported Sen. John Boozman, who cosponsored a bill to expand the Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s (CFTC) power to regulate cryptocurrency directly. Sen. Boozman is a foremost Republican on the Senate Agriculture Committee.
A former Clinton White House official, Chris Lehane, lauded the work of the super PAC. Lehane said:
“GMI has been as smart as they have been sophisticated in focusing on Democratic and Republican primaries where there was a clear pro crypto candidate running,”
GMI PAC to Do More Than the Already-Spent $10 Million for Crypto Enthusiast Candidates
Founded on January 28, the GMI PAC seeks to fund campaigns in the November midterm elections with $20 million. So far, support from the super PAC for candidates in the primaries with a disposition for crypto stands at $10 million.
The PAC’s founders and board of directors include Framework Ventures co-founder Vance Spencer and CMS Holding’s co-founder Dan Matuszewski. Other prominent backers include FTX Digital Markets CEO Ryan Salame, venture capital firm a16z, investment firm Paradigm, and Multicoin. Personally, Salame has contributed over $13 million to support Republican candidates. Sometimes, his contribution exceeds that of GMI PAC.
Bankman-Fried Supports Super PAC Movement
In April, FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried became a super PAC top donor after contributing $16 million to support the cause. The Federal Election Commission reported that one super PAC, the Protect Our Future group, received $10 million in donations from Bankman-Fried. The Protect Our Future PAC is a hybrid PAC mandated to disclose its donors and independent spending to the Federal Election Commission. According to the Executive Director of the Blockchain Association, Kristin Smith, “the crypto industry is proud to support elected officials who believe in the true potential of the crypto economy in the US. And we’re not shy, as an industry, to say and support what we value, and that includes political giving.”