US Democrats launch a crypto campaign for Kamala Harris
The US Democratic Party has kicked off a ‘Crypto for Kamala’ campaign to boost Kamala Harris’ chances against Donald Trump. Mark Cuban and the founder of SkyBridge Capital are backing the initiative.
They want to win over the 40 million American voters who own digital assets and to show that apparently, Democrats are all in on blockchain and cryptocurrency.
The campaign is bringing in top Democratic Senate leaders to speak at next week’s virtual town hall meeting. This meeting, which is open to everyone, will focus on how to support Kamala’s campaign and push for fundraising efforts.
‘Crypto for Kamala’ reportedly already has about 50 members, including industry participants and policy experts.
The Democrats’ strategies
Jonathan Padilla, one of the campaign organizers, said:
“The United States must continue to be a leader in blockchain and crypto, and groups like ‘Crypto for Kamala’ are working hard to ensure the right policies and conversations take place to ensure that outcome.”
This comes as the presidential race heats up between Trump and Kamala. Trump is already ahead in grabbing the crypto crowd’s attention, thanks to the Biden administration’s regulatory actions, with Kamala as vice president.
Since Biden stepped out of the race, Kamala is now leading the charge for the Democrats.
Democratic lawmakers and crypto industry Democrats aren’t backing down. They’re organizing a united effort to convince the 40 million Americans with digital assets that Trump and the Republicans aren’t the only crypto-friendly party. Rep. Wiley Nickel, D-N.C.:
“We’re not giving this issue to Trump. We want to encourage innovation and protect consumers, but allowing crypto to become a political football is only going to set the U.S. further behind.”
The battle for crypto voters
Trump and GOP lawmakers have been making big moves to win over crypto voters. Trump has promised to roll back strict Biden-era regulations on crypto.
Last month, he headlined the annual Bitcoin Conference in Nashville, Tennessee, raising over $20 million and pledging to create a strategic government reserve of Bitcoin.
He even vowed to fire SEC Chairman Gary Gensler “on day one” if he’s elected. On the other hand, Kamala has added two former crypto advisors to her campaign in the past week.
David Plouffe, who served on the advisory board of Binance, and Gene Sperling, a former board member of Ripple, are now on her team. Moe Vela, a former Biden adviser and now senior adviser to crypto firm Unicoin, said:
“Bringing crypto experts like Plouffe and Sperling onto her campaign is a far more powerful statement than just standing up at a Bitcoin conference and pandering to the industry for votes.”
But not everyone in the crypto industry is thrilled with Kamala. Some blame her for the heavy-handed regulations over the past three years under the Biden administration.
Critics like Elizabeth Warren have been quite loud about their hatred for crypto. It remains to be seen if the crypto industry will respond to Kamala as strongly as they have to Trump
