Kamala Harris could mean the end of Democrats’ hard line on cryptocurrencies, but it’s too early to tell for sure

Under President Biden, the cryptocurrency world has long struggled with a vocal critic whose administration has blocked legislation to help the industry and focused almost exclusively on enforcement. Now, after a historic weekend that saw Biden withdraw his reelection bid, the cryptocurrency industry must now evaluate his vice president, Kamala Harris, who is almost certain to represent the Democrats on the 2024 ticket. Would cryptocurrencies face much the same thing under a Harris presidency, or would she take a softer stance?

Harris hails from the tech capital of the country, California. While she has railed against social media platforms for sexual harassment during her tenure as the state’s attorney general, she has also cultivated a close relationship with executives like Meta’s Sheryl Sandberg, which has earned her a reputation as a pro-business politician. Many in the cryptocurrency world are hoping she’ll bring that same vision to the campaign trail and potentially the White House.

“Given the growing bipartisanship we are seeing in Congress, I am hopeful that the Harris presidency will continue on this path,” Adam Minehardt, head of global government relations at the Stellar Development Foundation and former chief of staff to Nydia Velázquez (D-N.Y.), said in a text message to Fortune.

Changing sea

The Biden administration may not have started out anti-crypto, but the collapse of FTX and the fallout from Sam Bankman-Fried’s political donations have set off a chain reaction of hostility. A series of congressional hearings in late 2022 and early 2023 highlighted the risks of blockchain platforms to consumers and government agencies led by Biden appointees like the chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission Author: Gary Gensler have filed lawsuits against some of the largest operators in the industry.

Despite the cold atmosphere, Democrats and centrist Republicans have advanced several historic legislative proposals, including a sweeping reform regulation of market structure from the House Financial Services Committee, as well as a bill to repeal a SEC Bulletin Controversial which has received broad bipartisan support. Meanwhile, former President Trump has embraced the blockchain industry, including a scheduled appearance at the Bitcoin conference later this week. His vice presidential pick, Senator J.D. Vance (R-Ohio), has also carved out a niche for himself as a cryptocurrency advocate and personally owns Bitcoin.

Harris may have risen to the California senator, and then vice president, as a pro-tech politician, but she hasn’t taken a public stance on blockchain regulation. One cryptocurrency lobbyist, who spoke to Fortune on condition of anonymity to talk openly about the evolving political dynamics, described the situation as “up in the air.” They said all eyes will be on Harris’s choice for vice president, as well as the advisors she surrounds herself with.

When Biden became president, many of his economic consultants came from the progressive camp and had worked specifically with Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), a fierce cryptocurrency critic. Harris doesn’t have the same connections. A cryptocurrency policy adviser and former Biden administration official who spoke to Fortune on condition of anonymity said Harris has been largely left out of economic policy. “She doesn’t have the same buy-in that Biden and Warren had, or even the same closeness to Warren’s staff,” they said. However, Warren approved Harris shortly after Biden withdrew his candidacy on Sunday.

If Harris is elected, the question will be whether she will seek to appoint a new SEC chairman, with Gensler’s term ending in 2026, though she may push for a clean slate. The cryptocurrency lobbyist said that would be the “safest path” to keeping the Biden administration’s infrastructure in place.

While Harris has yet to secure the Democratic nomination, a blockchain trade group, the Digital Chamber, has seized the opportunity to publish a letter urging her to support cryptocurrency legislation. “We believe this technology is nonpartisan and that the Democratic Party should also support these innovations,” they wrote.

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