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How to Delegate Your GNO

A step-by-step guide to delegating your GnosisDAO voting power to a representative.

Delegation lets you contribute to GnosisDAO governance without voting on every proposal yourself. You assign your GNO's voting weight to another address — your GNO stays in your wallet, and you keep full control over it. The delegate then votes on your behalf in the GnosisDAO Snapshot space.

This guide covers when delegation makes sense, how to choose a delegate, and how to set, change, or revoke your delegation.

Before You Start​

You need the following to delegate:

  • GNO held in your wallet on Ethereum mainnet or Gnosis Chain.
  • A compatible wallet — MetaMask, Safe, WalletConnect, or any wallet supported by Snapshot.
  • A small amount of ETH or xDAI for the delegation transaction. Unlike voting, delegation is recorded on-chain via the Snapshot delegate registry, so it costs gas.
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Delegation applies to the GnosisDAO Snapshot space only. It does not transfer ownership of your GNO, and it does not affect transfers, staking, or any other rights attached to the token.

Is Delegation Right for You?​

Delegation is worth considering if:

  • You hold GNO but don't have time to follow every proposal.
  • You want your voting power to count toward quorum — 33% of proposals that reach Snapshot fail because not enough GNO is voted, not because the proposal is unpopular.
  • You trust a specific community member, contributor, or team to represent your views.
  • You operate a multisig or treasury and want a single delegate to represent a pool of GNO.

If you'd rather vote case-by-case, you can skip delegation and follow the How to Vote on a GIP guide instead.

Step 1: Choose a Delegate​

  1. Go to the GnosisDAO delegates page: snapshot.box/#/s:gnosis.eth/delegates.
  2. Browse the list of active delegates. Each delegate row shows:
    • Their address or ENS name
    • The amount of GNO currently delegated to them
    • The number of delegators backing them
    • Their voting participation history
  3. Click into a delegate to see their published statement (if any), past votes on GIPs, and the addresses currently delegating to them.

What to look for in a delegate:

SignalWhat it tells you
Consistent voting recordThey actually show up to vote — useful for quorum
Published statement or forum activityYou can read their thinking and judge alignment
Vote rationale on the forumSome delegates explain their votes in proposal threads
Diversified delegatorsOther holders trust them; reduces single-point-of-failure risk

You can also delegate to your own address if you want to consolidate voting power from a multisig or secondary wallet into your main one.

Step 2: Connect Your Wallet​

  1. On the delegates page, click Connect wallet in the top-right corner.
  2. Select your wallet type and approve the connection.
  3. Use the wallet that holds your GNO. Delegating from a wallet with no GNO has no effect.

Step 3: Delegate​

  1. Find the delegate you chose in the list, or paste their address into the delegate field.
  2. Click Delegate.
  3. Confirm the delegate address in the prompt.
  4. Sign the transaction in your wallet and pay the gas fee.
  5. Wait for the transaction to confirm on-chain.

Once confirmed, your delegation is recorded in the Snapshot delegate registry and will apply to the next proposal whose snapshot block is taken after your transaction confirms. It does not retroactively change votes on proposals that are already open.

Step 4: Verify Your Delegation​

  1. Refresh the delegates page with your wallet still connected.
  2. Your chosen delegate should show your address in their list of delegators.
  3. Their displayed voting power should reflect your GNO balance once the next proposal opens.

If you don't see your delegation reflected, check that:

  • The transaction confirmed successfully on the block explorer.
  • You're connected with the wallet that holds the GNO (not a different address).
  • A new proposal has been created with a snapshot block taken after your delegation transaction.

Changing or Revoking Your Delegation​

You can change your delegate or revoke delegation at any time.

To change delegate:

  1. Return to snapshot.box/#/s:gnosis.eth/delegates.
  2. Connect the same wallet you used originally.
  3. Delegate to the new address. This overrides your previous delegation in a single transaction.

To revoke delegation entirely:

  1. Connect your wallet on the delegates page.
  2. Use the Clear delegation option (or delegate back to your own address).
  3. Sign and confirm the transaction.

Once revoked, your GNO will vote according to your own wallet again on the next proposal.

Last updated: May 2026