What is 'Vivek Kitchen Cabinet'? Unusual commission-based fundraising concept introduced by Vivek Ramaswamy

Republican presidential nomination contender, Vivek Ramaswamy, has launched a one-of-its-kind fundraising programme called ‘Vivek Kitchen Cabinet’. The biotech entrepreneur announced his unique commission-based fundraising programme on Monday via his official Twitter profile.

In the tweet, the 37-year-old wrote that “starting today, anyone can fundraise for the Vivek 2023 campaign and make a 10 per centcommission”.

In Ramaswamy’s scheme, any of his supporters who help raise funds for his White House bid will earn 10 per cent of whatever amount they bring in. As per Ramaswamy, the initiative is a step towards democratising the ability to make money by casting the traditional system of campaign fundraising as an “oligopoly” of the managerial class.

How will ‘Vivek Kitchen Cabinet’ work?

All the supporters who want to become part of this fundraising programme will undergo a background check before being issued an affiliate link to share to raise money for the candidate, Ramaswamy’s campaign CEO, Ben Yoho, toldPOLITICO.

Applicants who are accepted after the initial screening will be considered freelance contractors for the campaign and paid their commission on the total funds raised, Yoho said.

All the participants of the Vivek Kitchen Cabinet must comply with federal Election Commission rules.They will have to fill out a 1099 form, which means they will operate as independent contractors.

Vivek Kitchen Cabinet: A ‘revolution’ or a ‘multi-level marketing scheme’?

As of the end of March, Ramaswamy had put $10.5 million of his own money into the campaign but said he is prepared to spend as much as $100 million on his bid. Yoho said that the average donation made to the campaign is $30.94 and that last week Ramaswamy passed the 60,000-donor mark, clearing the donor threshold required to qualify for the first debate.

Ramaswamy called his new fundraising concept a “revolution” and said that he was “stunned” to learn how much money is made in politics.

Professional fundraisers retain a huge percentage of the money raised for a candidate themselves. Bundlers, on the other hand, work their contacts to drive donations to the campaign, generally in exchange for special access to the candidate, perks and other favours.

Ramaswamy’s concept is an attempt to combine these two approaches on a much smaller scale.

Not a lot of people areimpressed with this idea and some critics even compare his fundraising concept to a multi-level marketing scheme.

“Good grief. Vivek is now setting up pyramid schemes right out in the open,” conservative lawyer Heath Mayo tweeted.

“Also, there is not a ‘small oligopoly of political fundraisers’—they are a dime a dozen. He’s just making things up as he goes.”

“Did he learn this trick from Bernie Madoff?” asked Josh Hammer, a Newsweek senior editor-at-large.

(With inputs from agencies)

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