Author: Grayscale
Compiled by: Felix, PANews
According to Grayscale's latest poll, American voters are increasingly interested in Bitcoin, driven by macroeconomic developments and Bitcoin's growing maturity as an asset. About 47% of voters want to include cryptocurrencies in their investment portfolios, highlighting the prominence of cryptocurrencies in the upcoming November elections. The following is the full survey report:
Harris Poll conducted a survey of voters in the 2024 US election on behalf of Grayscale. The latest longitudinal survey data from Phase 2 (collected between April 30 and May 2, 2024) confirms the findings from Phase 1 and highlights that US voters still have many of the same priorities and attitudes since Phase 1, which was conducted from November 27 to 29, 2023. However, there have been some noteworthy changes in interest and opinions about holding cryptocurrencies and how voters view cryptocurrencies in the political landscape - both topics that are becoming increasingly important ahead of the 2024 US election.
Ahead of the June 2024 U.S. presidential debate between Biden and Trump, voters expressed uncertainty and what’s at stake: wars rage around the world, political discourse continues to polarize, and the U.S. economy continues to inflate, among other things. The two possible presidential candidates have very different visions for the country, and nearly half of voters say they would switch candidates if they could choose. Amid this uncertainty, crypto assets are becoming increasingly relevant to voters, as revealed in a new survey conducted by pollster Harris on behalf of Grayscale. Key takeaways include:
We believe Bitcoin’s relevance is increasing due to macro dynamics and Bitcoin’s own growing maturity, with nearly half of voters (47%) now wanting to include crypto in their portfolio (up from 40% at the end of last year).
As in the first phase of this year’s survey, respondents ranked inflation as their top issue in the election (28%), again highlighting the potential value of assets like Bitcoin given their transparency and capped supply.
Trump embraced cryptocurrencies on the campaign trail, and recent crypto bills FIT21 and SAB 121 have received bipartisan support in Congress. Harris Poll data supports the view that cryptocurrencies are a bipartisan topic, with similar holdings among Republicans (18%) and Democrats (19%).
Will November Be ‘Bitcoin Election Month’?
Bitcoin is gaining attention
Grayscale believes that Bitcoin is receiving more attention due to macroeconomic developments and Bitcoin's growing maturity as an asset. In the past six months, since the first phase of this survey, voters have paid more attention to Bitcoin (41% compared to 34% in November 2023) due to geopolitical tensions, inflation, and risks to the US dollar. Notably, 28% of voters believe that inflation is the top issue in the election so far, highlighting the potential value of assets such as Bitcoin, which have transparency and strict supply limits.
At the same time, Grayscale added a series of questions to the survey to gain a deeper understanding of voters' opinions. Harris Poll found that Bitcoin-related events, including the approval of the US spot Bitcoin ETF in January 2024 and the halving in April 2024, made voters more interested in investing in Bitcoin and other crypto assets (18% and 20%, respectively). In particular, the approval of the Bitcoin ETF made 9% of retired voters more interested in investing in Bitcoin or crypto assets.
Figure 1: Voters are increasingly interested in Bitcoin
So far, 2024 has been a great year for Bitcoin. Bitcoin hit a new all-time high on March 13; moreover, the price of Bitcoin has been higher every day so far in 2024 than during previous election periods. Will November be “Bitcoin Election Month”?
Figure 2: Bitcoin prices are higher than in previous election periods
The growing interest in cryptocurrencies extends beyond Bitcoin to a wider range of crypto assets. This interest is reflected in widespread interest and willingness to invest. Nearly a third of voters (32%) said they have become more open to learning about crypto investments or actually investing in cryptocurrencies since the beginning of the year. Voters are also more likely to view cryptocurrencies as a good long-term investment opportunity than in November 2023 (23% vs 19%), and more and more voters expect to include cryptocurrencies in their portfolios (47% vs 40%).
Figure 3: Voters increasingly expect their portfolios to include cryptocurrencies
Cryptocurrency is a bipartisan political issue
Although Trump was more supportive of cryptocurrencies during the campaign, the data shows that cryptocurrencies are a bipartisan issue, with cryptocurrency ownership rates similar among Republicans (18%) and Democrats (19%).
Voters are split on which political party is more favorable to the crypto industry, with equal shares of voters (30% each) believing that both Democrats and Republicans hold the most favorable stance on crypto policy. These findings suggest that support for cryptocurrencies is not entirely skewed toward one party, but rather balanced across the political spectrum. This is consistent with recent bipartisan congressional support for SAB 121, which enables financial institutions to serve as custodians of digital assets, which could increase accessibility for crypto investors.
Despite this, Republican voters still tend to view inflation and economic issues as the most pressing issues facing the United States (54% vs. 33% for Democrats). But Republicans seem to attach more importance to issues related to Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies (inflation and economy), while data shows that Democrats are more concerned about gun violence, climate change, and income inequality than Republicans, as shown in Figure 4 below. This may explain why Trump has recently tended to support cryptocurrencies during his campaign.
Figure 4: The most pressing issues facing the two parties
in conclusion
The United States is facing a "fork in the road" in many ways. The two candidates hold different political views on government deficits and debt, inflation and Federal Reserve independence, and the role of the United States in the world. These positions have a direct impact on the US dollar and Bitcoin.
As voters become increasingly interested in cryptocurrencies, the next government's attitude towards this emerging digital asset will be crucial. This is especially important for young voters, as 62% of Generation Z and Millennial voters believe that cryptocurrency and blockchain technology are the future of finance. In any case, as November approaches, one clear trend is that all candidates and policymakers from all sectors preparing to participate in the 2024 election will pay more and more attention to cryptocurrency.
Related reading: Cryptocurrency becomes an important issue in swing state ballots? An in-depth analysis of Harris Poll’s crypto survey in swing states
