The crypto market has received a boost in the unlikeliest of places. The U.S. midterm elections have seen two crypto-friendly candidates become governors of California and Colorado.
Two New Advocates of Crypto
The U.S. midterm elections may not have produced results either side of the fence were looking for. It did, however, bring into the spotlight two crypto-friendly candidates.
Democrat Gavin Newsom won with over 59 percent of the vote, beating Republican John Cox, to become California’s new governor. Considered pro-Bitcoin, Newsom first began accepting crypto campaign donations in 2014. In a tweet, he said at the time:
Hey @jaredpolis, thanks for leading the way. My mission? To raise more #bitcoin than you. Game on?
— Gavin Newsom (@GavinNewsom) May 20, 2014
Initially, someone who didn’t see the fascination with Bitcoin, Newsom has since changed his tune. So much so, that in 2014 when his campaign staff asked him not to take a public stand on it, he said he was going to follow the disruption path.
In a report from SFGate, he stated:
I should promote the technology ever so subtly by saying I’ll accept bitcoin in the campaign.
According to a 2017 report from The Sacramento Bee, he even received backing from the Winklevoss twins. So much so, that they donated $116,800 in total to his campaign to run for governor during the year. In September, California’s political campaign monitoring agency, the Fair Political Practices Commission (FPPC), banned crypto political donations.
Meanwhile, in Colorado, Democrat Jared Polis beat Republican Walker Stapleton as governor by nearly 52 percent to 44 percent.
Polis, who is also the first openly gay governor, has long touted the benefits of the blockchain. On his campaign website, he dedicated a section to the technology. He also accepted Bitcoin and Bitcoin Cash campaign donations. He states that:
My goal is to establish Colorado as a national hub for blockchain innovation in business and government. I believe strong leadership will put Colorado at the forefront of innovation in this sector – encouraging companies to flock to the state and establishing government applications that save taxpayers money and create value for Colorado residents.
Polis also makes up one of the 18 members among the Blockchain Congressional Caucus, which currently doesn’t have one woman present. It remains to be seen how much longer this situation will remain in place.
This, however, is a promising step in the right direction for the industry. With two new advocates of crypto voted in as the governors of California and Colorado, this may make it somewhat easier to see new changes be adopted in favor of cryptocurrency and blockchain within these states.
What do you think of these results? Do you think it’ll change crypto for the better? Let us know in the comments below.
Images courtesy of Shutterstock and Twitter/@GavinNewsom.