If only those who invest in cryptocurrencies voted in the United States, the election would be won by Donald Trump by a wide margin.
The crypto world is very masculinized. So much so that it is estimated that a man is twice as likely to participate in this type of investment as a woman. Because of this, and because of the gender gap that is conditioning electoral behavior in the United States and other territories, today the Republican has an advantage of more than 10 percentage points among the Cryptobros.
Trump has invested heavily in this audience (although, according to a recent Federal Reserve study, only 7% of Americans have cryptocurrencies). And it does so to reduce the Democratic advantages in three groups that four years ago gave the key to the White House to Joe Biden: those under 30 years of age, African-American voters and Latinos. In an election that is expected to be so close, every vote counts.
In the last two elections (2020 and 2022), youth participation reached record levels, especially due to the mobilization of women, a fact that especially benefited the Democrats. The Republican campaign has taken note and, taking advantage of the fact that among men under 30 the use of cryptocurrencies is higher than average, they are trying to strongly mobilize this electorate. Also to African Americans and Latinos who, traditionally, have voted in favor of Harris’ party, but, in that age group, this type of investment is more frequent. These are the voters Trump is targeting, and he is succeeding. While among African Americans as a whole he gets only 8% support, among men under 50 years of age 21% say they will vote for him. This offensive to gain the support of cryptobros is joined by other similar actions, such as courting the so-called gym bros. The goal is the same: mobilize young men.
This strategy is not limited to the Trump campaign or the United States. In several countries, right-wing leaders have already targeted the cryptobros with success. Nayib Bukele made El Salvador the first country in the world to officially recognize the use of cryptocurrencies and Javier Milei has also supported this type of investment, first as a candidate and later as president. These experiences most likely influenced the thinking of Donald Trump, who, in 2021, declared that cryptocurrencies were a “fraud” and a “disaster waiting to happen.” Now they are an important part of his strategy to return to the presidency.
Proposals and social networks
In September, Trump launched his own cryptocurrency startup: World Liberty Financial. The website’s home page displays a large photo of the candidate with his ear injured from the July assassination attempt.
In addition, his campaign relies on some of the most influential people in the crypto world: Ryan Selkis, who has more than 350 thousand followers on X and is a key member of Fair Shake, a Political Action Committee that donates to candidates for different positions, mostly conservative; Jesse Powell, with more than 200 thousand followers on X; and brothers Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss, who, between them, have more than 1.7 million followers.
Through these channels, the campaign emphasizes messages related to masculinity. A study highlights that, among cryptobroshighlight those who believe in traditional gender stereotypes and fear that they are not meeting all the requirements of masculinity. This makes them prone and leads them to adopt far-right ideas, such as that gender equality or aid to minority groups harms them.
The Democratic reaction
The Harris campaign is aware of Trump’s strategy to attract young men and knows that financial donations from the crypto world have increased significantly this election cycle. Therefore, in their triangulation offensive to dissuade or win over Republican voters, the cryptobros They have had a special place.
The candidate has proposed supporting the growth of the market and providing it with a regulatory framework that protects the investment of vulnerable groups, such as African-American men. With this, he aims to change the perception that the Democratic Party is worse for the interests of this system.
In addition, her campaign is also receiving support from some influencers such as Mark Cuban, who has invested in several cryptocurrency projects and supports the vice president financially and through the media.
On November 5th, not only will the cryptobrosbut the votes of this 7% could be decisive. If Harris wants to be president, she can’t let Trump keep all this audience. It only remains to see which investment works best.
