This week, 2 candidates in the 2024 US presidential election announced that they would accept donations in Bitcoin. With the country under fire for its repressive regulation, will cryptocurrencies play a political role in the upcoming election
Bitcoin in the race for the US presidential election
Robert Francis Kennedy Jr, a member of the Democratic Party in the United States, announced at the Bitcoin 2023 conference this weekend that he would be accepting donations in BTC to finance his presidential campaign.
In doing so, the nephew of former President John Fitzgerald Kennedy made history in the race for the White House by becoming the first candidate to do so.
He has already spoken out in favour of cryptocurrencies on a number of occasions. Earlier this month, for example, he voiced his opposition to the government’s proposal to tax cryptocurrency miners up to 30%, describing crypto technologies as a major driver of innovation:
Cryptocurrencies, led by bitcoin, along with other crypto technologies are a major innovation engine. It is a mistake for the U.S. government to hobble the industry and drive innovation elsewhere. Biden’s proposed 30% tax on cryptocurrency mining is a bad idea.
– Robert F. Kennedy Jr (@RobertKennedyJr) May 3, 2023
While he took a firm stance against vaccination during the Covid-19 pandemic, he went back on this point during his speech at Bitcoin 2023, referring to the measures taken by the Canadian government against the “freedom convoy” demonstrators:
“When I’m not vaccinating, I’m vaccinating myself.
“When I witnessed this cataclysm, this devastating use of government repression, I realised for the first time how important free money is to freedom as freedom of speech. “
Vivek Ramaswamy also says “yes” to Bitcoin
Saturday evening, another candidate in the 2024 US presidential election made it official that he would accept donations in BTC, again as part of the Bitcoin 2023 conference. The candidate is Republican Vivek Ramaswamy, who has called for the election to be a “referendum on fiat currency”:
Just announced we’re officially accepting Bitcoin donations.
Give $1.
Let’s make the 2024 election a referendum on fiat currency. https://t.co/KrHJdomtCh pic.twitter.com/OkVmoBmTFz– Vivek Ramaswamy (@VivekGRamaswamy) May 20, 2023
The candidate also highlighted the freedoms inherent in Bitcoin’s philosophy:
“Freedom of money and freedom of speech are two sides of the same coin in this country. Rekindle confidence in our monetary system and confidence in America itself. “
On his Twitter account, two donation pages were shared, one powered by Bitpay services and the second by OpenNode.
With the US elections not until November next year, it is still far too early to draw any real conclusions from these announcements. For both, the possibility cannot be ruled out that these speeches are simply there to capture a share of the electorate.
Nevertheless, it will be interesting to see how crypto-assets feature in the debates, given that the country has tended to be noted for its hostility since the election of Joe Biden.
