Democrats ‘war on crypto’ will lose its key voters: Winklevoss twins

The Winklevoss twins have warned that the United States President Joe Biden and the Democratic Party might forfeit its essential young voters due to its ongoing “war against crypto.”

On June 10, Cameron Winklevoss, co-founder of the crypto exchange Gemini, warned that the Democrats’ war would “alienate an entire generation” of youth voters, who had been essential to their victory in the preceding election.

Cameron specifically named Senator Elizabeth Warren and President Biden’s pick for Securities and Exchange Commission Chair, Gary Gensler.

On June 11, a day after Warren and Gensler’s “war” was declared, Tyler Winklevoss, the other co-founder of Gemini and twin brother of Cameron, tweeted that the Democrats would lose the 2024 election if this conflict continued.

During Gensler’s time at the SEC, there has been a rise in enforcement actions against the cryptocurrency industry, while Senator Warren has expressed a desire to create an “anti-crypto army.”

On November 5th, 2024, a presidential election as well as elections for the House of Representatives and the Senate will take place in the United States. All 435 seats in the House of Representatives and 34 out of 100 seats in the Senate will be contested.

Young people aged 18 to 29 constitute a significant voting group for the Democrats. According to the results of the 2022 US midterm elections, 63% of the surveyed youth voted for the Democrats, compared to 35% for the Republicans.

A recent report by Pew Research found that 28% of American 18 to 29-year-olds have used or invested in cryptocurrency at some point, making this age cohort the largest demographic of crypto users or investors.

Mark Cuban commented that it is nearly impossible to discern what is and is not a security according to the SEC.

It is uncertain, however, how significant crypto policy is to young voters compared to other matters.

In January, prior to the banking crisis in March, a Pew survey on policy priorities revealed that strengthening the economy was the top issue; for those aged 18 to 29, however, improving education was the top priority.

Cryptocurrency regulation did not rank among the top 21 policy items according to Pew’s survey.

Regardless, some presidential nominees from both Republican and Democratic parties have made their views on crypto policy evident, with Ron DeSantis and Robert F. Kennedy Jr. both expressing pro-crypto stances.

According to data from the lobbying tracking site OpenSecrets, Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss have donated to campaigns for both Republican and Democratic nominees.

Does SEC Chair Gary Gensler have the ultimate authority when it comes to cryptocurrency regulation?