Just 4% of US Considers Crypto in Candidate Choice: Poll

Just 4% of Americans surveyed say they would weigh a political candidate’s stance on crypto policy in deciding who to vote for.

Affordable housing, consumer fraud protection and lower bank fees were the top three issues respondents said they wanted Congress to tackle, according to a survey of 2,035 US adults released on Wednesday by Politico and conducted by polling firm Public First.

Just 18% of respondents considered establishing rules for the crypto market a top priority for Congress, one percentage point ahead of regulating large banks.

The results show a divide between the average American voter’s top priorities and those of crypto industry lobbyists, who have been pushing Congress to pass crypto legislation ahead of the midterm elections.

Crypto lobbies poured more than $130 million into the 2024 elections, the most of any industry, and have already spent $320 million to influence the November midterms, according to data compiled by researcher Molly White.

Crypto lobbyists have made it clear that they will use their significant funds against any candidate who doesn’t support the industry, having spent over $5.5 million on opposing candidates in congressional races in Illinois this year.

Less than a third oppose making crypto mainstream

According to the survey, just 27% said they support or strongly support the US government taking action to legitimize crypto as a mainstream financial asset, while 31% said they oppose or strongly oppose it. 

Poll responses to whether the US government should legitimize crypto as a mainstream asset. Source: POLITICO

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“Most voters don’t care about digital assets,” Republican Representative Dusty Johnson told Politico. “But those who do care a lot. It is a high-intensity issue. And I think it’s going a little bit more mainstream. The number of people who ask me about it is still very small, but I would say growing.”

More than half of the respondents said they had not, and would not, consider trading crypto, while 19% had traded crypto. Of those who trade crypto, 7% said a political candidate’s stance on crypto would impact their vote.

The poll also found that 45% of respondents viewed investing in crypto as a risk not worth taking, even if it offered high returns, compared with 25% who said it was worth it.

The latest poll clashes with another poll of 2,008 registered voters released on Friday by HarrisX, which found 47% said they would be at least somewhat likely to consider voting for a candidate outside their preferred party if the candidate supported passing a long-awaited crypto bill that would lay out how the industry is regulated.

The Senate Banking Committee on Thursday will vote on whether to advance such a bill that has seen involvement from the White House to cut a deal with crypto and banking lobbies. A version of the bill passed the House in June as the CLARITY Act.

Magazine: Clarity Act risks repeat of Europe’s mistakes, crypto lawyer warns