Gina Glantz is a Democratic political strategist who has been active for more than six decades. ¹ Glantz further sits on the boards of directors for numerous left-of-center and liberal organizations advocating for a variety of issues. She is the founder and president of GenderAvenger, a left-of-center feminist advocacy group funded in part by New Venture Fund. Glantz also has close ties to numerous labor unions, most notably the SEIU, for which she worked in a senior advisory role. ²

Career

Early Career

Gina Glantz began her career as an advertising account executive in New York City before she shifted to working in the political consulting field. Glantz later served as the national campaign manager for former U.S. Sen. Bill Bradley (D-NJ) during his failed 2000 presidential election bid. She also worked as an administrator for former U.S. Rep. Andrew Maguire (D-NJ) and for former Governor of Vermont Howard Dean (D). She also worked for Dean’s failed 2004 presidential run. Glantz also writes for HuffPost, a left-of-center news aggregation website where she has published articles covering topics such as feminist issues and abortion. ³ Glantz previously worked as lead advisor to Andy Stern, during his time as president of the SEIU. ⁴

America Coming Together

Glantz was brought on to head America Coming Together (ACT), a liberal PAC founded with the goal of preventing President Bush’s reelection in 2004. ⁵ ACT was closely connected to numerous left-of-center labor unions and organizations. Most notably, the organization received money from Planned Parenthood, the SEIU, AFL-CIO, and America Votes. The organization closed its doors in 2005, but the FEC fined the organization $775,000 in the same year for spending outside of federal regulations. That figure was the third largest FEC fine ever handed down at that time. ⁶

Martin & Glantz

Glantz was a co-founder and president of Martin & Glantz (now operating as Fowler Hoffman), a left-of-center consulting firm that caters to Democratic candidates and organizations. Martin & Glantz represented a number of high-profile clients during Glantz’s years leading the organization. Most notable of these were the Ford Foundation, Planned Parenthood, the ACLU, the California Wellness Foundation, and NARAL. ⁷

GenderAvenger

Glantz is the founder and president of GenderAvenger, a left-of-center feminist advocacy group that uses social pressure tactics to gain increased attention for popular feminism-based political movements. The organization highlights companies through its so-called “Hall of Shame,” ranking them based on how many women they employ compared to how many men they employ. The organization has received donations from the New Venture Fund, a large liberal charity-funding organization; and from the Rockefeller Brothers Fund, the left-of-center charity organization founded by the five sons of John D. Rockefeller. ⁸

Board Memberships

Glantz is a member of the boards of directors for a number of left-of-center and liberal organizations. Glantz is the vice-chair of the board of directors for Planned Parenthood Action Fund, the lobbying branch of Planned Parenthood, the largest abortion provider in the United States. She also sits on the board of directors for Demos, a left-wing policy advocacy group that pushes a liberal agenda across multiple issue areas. ⁹ Glantz currently serves as a member of the board for Oxfam America, the American nonprofit arm of Oxfam International, which is devoted to increasing international aid toward programs such as humanitarianism and left-progressive environmentalism. ¹⁰

She sits on the advisory board for the 3% Movement, a left-of-center organization that calls for increased women in creative director positions for large companies. ¹¹ Glantz previously was a member of the board of directors for Democracy Works, a left-of-center voter participation advocacy organization.

Abortion Advocacy

Aside from holding board positions with NARAL and Planned Parenthood, Gina Glantz has played a role in the movement to increase access to abortion in the United States. Glantz and her firm authored an amicus brief in 1989 signed by numerous Democratic politicians in favor of increased access to abortion during the Webster v. Reproductive Health Services Supreme Court case which aimed to legalize a Missouri law placing restrictions on the use of state funds on abortions. ¹² Glantz is an extremely vocal opponent of state efforts to restrict abortions, and said in a 2012 interview: “I feel as though I am living somewhere in a world squeezed between the Scarlet Letter and The Handmaid’s Tale.” ¹³

Political Donations

Glantz has made sizeable donations to Democratic Congressional and presidential candidates. In 1992, Glantz donated $400 to President Bill Clinton’s election PAC. In 2000, she donated $1,000 to Democrat Bill Bradley’s failed presidential campaign against eventual Democratic nominee Vice President Al Gore. Glantz was a senior advisor to Bradley during his campaign. Furthermore, Glantz also made donations of $1,000 to John Kerry during his failed 2004 presidential campaign; $2,300 to Hillary for America during Hillary Clinton’s failed 2016 presidential bid; and $2,300 to Obama for America, the PAC associated with President Barack Obama’s 2008 campaign. Glantz has also financially supported numerous Democratic candidates for Congressional seats including former Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-CA), Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), former Rep. Joe Kennedy (D-MA), and Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT). ¹⁴

Glantz has also given large sums in donations to left-of-center and liberal PACs associated with issues primarily surrounding labor and abortion. Since 2003, Glantz has donated $6,300 to SEIU COPE, the political campaign arm of the SEIU labor union with which she is closely connected. Since 1990, Glantz has made $6,145 in donations to Emily’s List, a PAC that gives to female Democratic candidates for public office who align with the PAC’s pro-abortion stance. She has also donated $27,600 to multiple PACs associated with Planned Parenthood, the largest abortion provider and one of the largest advocates for more lenient abortion legislation in the United States. ¹⁵

1. “Kennedy School Fellows: Gina Glantz.” Harvard Kennedy School. Accessed July 2, 2021. https://iop.harvard.edu/fellows/gina-glantz
2. “Discover the Networks Profile: Gina Glantz.” Discover the Networks. Accessed July 2, 2021. https://www.discoverthenetworks.org/individuals/gina-glantz
3. “Kennedy School Fellows: Gina Glantz.” Harvard Kennedy School. Accessed July 2, 2021. https://iop.harvard.edu/fellows/gina-glantz
4. HuffPost Author Bio: Gina Glantz. HuffPost. Accessed July 5, 2021. https://www.huffpost.com/author/gina-glantz
5. “ACT aims to have a long-term impact.” Roll Call. Accessed July 5, 2021. https://www.rollcall.com/2004/07/12/act-aims-to-have-long-term-impact/
6. “Influence Watch Profile: America Coming Together.” Influence Watch. Accessed July 5, 2021. https://www.influencewatch.org/political-party/america-coming-together/
7. “Kennedy School Fellows: Gina Glantz.” Harvard Kennedy School. Accessed July 2, 2021. https://iop.harvard.edu/fellows/gina-glantz
8. “Organization Profile: Gender Avenger.” Influence Watch. Accessed July 2, 2021. https://www.influencewatch.org/non-profit/genderavenger/
9. 2019 IRS Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax: Demos. Part VII, Identification of Officers.
10. Speaker Profile: Gina Glantz. 3% Movement. Accessed July 5, 2021. https://www.3percentmovement.com/speaker/gina-glantz
11. Speaker Profile: Gina Glantz. 3% Movement. Accessed July 5, 2021. https://www.3percentmovement.com/speaker/gina-glantz
12. “Interview with Gina Glantz.” Just Seeds, Meredith Stern. Accessed July 5, 2021. https://justseeds.org/interview-with-gina-glantz/
13. “Interview with Gina Glantz.” Just Seeds, Meredith Stern. Accessed July 5, 2021. https://justseeds.org/interview-with-gina-glantz/
14. “Individual Contributions: Gina Glantz.” FEC.gov. Accessed July 2, 2021. https://www.fec.gov/data/receipts/individual-contributions/?contributor_name=gina+glantz
15. “Individual Contributions: Gina Glantz.” FEC.gov. Accessed July 2, 2021. https://www.fec.gov/data/receipts/individual-contributions/?contributor_name=gina+glantz