\n<\/p>\n
Aarika Rhodes, an elementary school teacher mounting a left-leaning primary challenge against California Democrat Brad Sherman, the most prominent critic of cryptocurrency in the House, is promoting the technology in her run. She said she has taken several thousand dollars worth of donations in cryptocurrency to date, having embraced it after talking to voters and hearing from crypto advocates who urged her to draw a distinction with Sherman on the issue.<\/p>\n
\u201cMore and more people of color, women, single moms are looking into Bitcoin,\u201d the largest cryptocurrency, Rhodes said. \u201cI never met anyone who was against it.\u201d <\/p>\n
Roughly one in six Americans have personally traded, used or invested in cryptocurrency, according to Pew Research Center<\/a>, including 13 percent of white, 18 percent of Black, 21 percent of Hispanic and 23 percent of Asian Americans.<\/p>\n So far, the political incentives around cryptocurrency are proving lopsided. More candidates have found reason to embrace a technology backed by legions of devoted users, a fresh crop of newly rich donors, and a growing number of lobbyists<\/a>, than to vocally reject it.<\/p>\n \u201cLook, it just seems cool. Everybody\u2019s got a friend who\u2019s made some money on it. There\u2019s a lobbyist who wants to take me to lunch,\u201d said Sherman, who has called for banning cryptocurrency outright, of the hype that has made it popular with his colleagues on the Hill. Shunning the technology, on the other hand, has brought the congressman few immediate rewards. In addition to facing a crypto-fueled primary challenge, he has inspired the creation of a new super PAC<\/a>, Shut Down Sherman, \u201cdedicated to taking down Enemy Number 1 to Crypto.\u201d<\/p>\n