Fuente: Adobe Stock / Joe GoughThe US midterm elections are underway, and the outcome could have a bigger impact on the future of crypto regulation than most people realize.
Polls so far in the election have indicated a clear Republican advantage for the House of Representatives, while the Senate is a bit more uncertain. If Republicans manage to secure majorities in the House and Senate, the United States could face more political deadlocks in the coming years, as the White House remains under Democratic control for at least two years.
For cryptocurrencies, the election is important given the significant regulatory issues on the government's agenda. According to a recent report by Bloomberg, the cryptocurrency industry widely expected that 2022 would be the year that regulatory clarity would finally arrive, or that lawmakers would, at the very least, come up with a plan to regulate cryptocurrencies. .
However, just two months into the year, the chances of Congress passing crypto-related bills seem very slim, the report notes. Still, it's not all bad for the crypto industry, where the general sentiment is that Republicans express more favorable views than their fellow Democrats.
For example, one of the most notable crypto critics in the House is Democratic Rep. Brad Sherman, who first rose to prominence in the crypto community in 2019 when he proposed to ban active cryptocurrency purchases in the United States. The congressman followed up with more sarcastic comments about cryptocurrencies during a hearing in December of last year, when he suggested that "bitcoin could be replaced by ether" and various obscure altcoins that he called "hamster room" and "mongoose room." .
Additionally, it is believed that a Republican-controlled Congress would push more aggressively to pass bills that the crypto industry demands. Furthermore, Bloomberg also noted that Republicans are likely to pressure regulators like the SEC to soften their aggressive stance towards the crypto industry.
Mike Conaway, a former chairman of the House Agriculture Committee who now lobbies on behalf of the crypto industry, commented to Bloomberg on the regulatory outlook for crypto if the US ends up with a divided government after the election. , and said he was hopeful.
“Until now, most things related to cryptocurrency have remained relatively bipartisan,” Conway said, adding that passing cryptocurrency legislation would be an “easy win” for the White House and Congress. At the same time, it would make it clear to everyone that Democrats and Republicans can still work together, she said.
As of 9:00 pm UTC release time, the latest poll was still indicating a Republican victory in the House, while the Senate remained tied, according to Politico. The outlet also said Republicans were "brimmed with confidence" on Election Day that their party was "on track to claim majorities in both houses of Congress."