Republicans Voters Most Pro-Crypto, Survey Finds
US voters who self-identify as Republicans are stronger supporters of crypto, compared to Democrats and independents, according to a survey by Clovr, a company focused on promoting the mainstream adoption of blockchain technologies.
Overall, the survey of 1,023 eligible US voters found that an overwhelming majority of respondents have a positive attitude about political campaign donations in cryptocurrency. Furthermore, more than half of those surveyed said cryptocurrencies are secure enough to be used for political purposes.
Another question where republicans were far more pro-crypto than any other group was on the issue of whether cryptocurrencies are stable enough to be used for political purposes. Here, 52% of Republicans said ‘yes’, while only 40% of Democrats held the same opinion. Independent voters, which, as Clovr noted, includes libertarians and others that are generally seen as pro-crypto, were the most skeptic group among all, with only 35% saying cryptocurrencies are stable enough.
On average, only a quarter of the people surveyed said they would be more likely to contribute to a political campaign if it accepted donations in cryptocurrency. Again, Republicans were more open to the idea than the average voter, with 27% saying that having the option of donating crypto would make them more likely contribute.
However, Republicans who have previously donated to politicians were more likely to chose donations in dollars.
Perhaps most surprisingly in the study was the finding that a whopping 64% of people who said they were “extremely familiar” with cryptocurrency, believed using cryptocurrency in the political system would “make foreign interference in elections more common.”
On this issue, Democratic voters were ahead of the average, with two-thirds saying they believe crypto would make foreign interference more common.
Moreover, at the same time the majority of the respondents believe that cryptocurrency is more likely to be used illegally in the political system.
Overall, the study revealed that voters place more trust in cryptocurrency and the underlying blockchain technology itself, than they do in politician’s ability to handle the same technologies, Clovr noted.
In conclusion, the firm added that they see the results as a “positive step” in lobbying the Federal Election Commission (FEC) to expand the use of cryptocurrencies in political campaigns.
“Some states allow candidates to accept money from corporations and others do not. Only two states, Tennessee and Virginia, have seriously considered legislation that allows donors to use digital currencies. Tennessee is the only state to enact legislation, and the language in the statute is somewhat vague,” the firm said.
