The North American state of North Carolina has recently banned political campaign donations in bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies as these “cannot be reliably valued,” and could see donations surpass legally established limits expressed in USD.
According to The News & Observer Emmanuel Wilder, a Republican candidate running in the 2018 US midterm Legislature elections, recently asked the North Carolina State Board of Elections and Ethics whether or not he could accept donations in bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies to fund his campaign.
When reaching out to the State Board, Wilder added suggestions as to how these donations could be value, already expecting his request to be denied. In an email, he wrote that it would be a “great opportunity to show that North Carolina is truly open to new emerging markets.”
Kim Westbrook Strach, the state elections executive director, got back to Wilder in a letter revealing he couldn’t accept cryptos as these couldn’t “be reliably valued.” Presumably, Strach’s stance is derived from the volatility in the cryptocurrency ecosystem. Bitcoin, the flagship cryptocurrency, saw its value fall from a near $20,000 all-time high to $7,600 at press time.
Per Strach’s words, the board doesn’t “have the confidence” that it could “adequately regulate contributions to a political campaign in North Carolina in the form of cryptocurrency.” In response, Wilder issued a statement revealing he was disappointed. It read:
Blockchain and other technologies hold the ability to improve how business and public institutions operate day to day. Although it might not be today, there will be a day when this technology will have a place in the political process.
Earlier this year US Senate candidate Austin Peterson received a $13,000 bitcoin donation he was forced to return, as it exceeded the $5,400 individual contribution limit the Federal Elections Commission (FEC) set.
Since 2014, the FEC has been allowing candidates to accept BTC donations, as long as these don’t go over the individual contribution limit. In a Facebook post, Petersen advised whoever donated the funds to start a political action committee (PAC).
A PAC is an organization that’s formed to raise funds on behalf of candidates running for public office, who represent the interest of the organization behind the PAC. As CryptoGlobe covered, popular San Francisco-based cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase recently established a PAC.
