First in the Vault: Crypto advocates will publish polling today that suggests a warmer industry embrace from Vice President Kamala Harris’ campaign could win over some on-the-fence Democrats.
The survey, performed by Mercury Analytics and sponsored by the crypto-focused investment firm Paradigm, has some interesting kernels for Democrats and the Harris campaign to chew on.
Among the findings: Undecided Democratic voters were more likely to own crypto than the coconut-pilled among us. The Mercury poll found that 13% of the 804 registered Democrats surveyed were undecided about backing Harris. Among those voters, 18% said they owned crypto, and 21% said the Biden administration has been at least somewhat “too hostile” towards digital assets.
The poll also found that crypto continues to be more popular among Democratic voters of color than white voters. Just 13% of white Democrats polled by Mercury own crypto, compared to 28% of Black Democrats, 32% of Hispanic Democrats and 27% of Asian American and Pacific Islander Democrats.
The poll has a margin of error of 3.5% and was done in the days immediately following President Joe Biden’s decision to withdraw his reelection bid, from July 25 to Aug. 1.
These numbers aren’t earth-shattering. But they’re not nothing, either — especially in an unsettled, potentially close presidential contest likely to come down to a handful of key swing states.
The crypto industry has had more luck influencing politics this cycle with cold, hard campaign cash than appeals to policy. But the poll also previews how some crypto pluses could dovetail with standard Democratic campaign planks, including abortion access.
Without being asked about crypto specifically, 79% of Democratic respondents said it was at least “very important” to be able to “pay for reproductive care without making their transactions known to their state government or the federal government.”
