With the U.S. presidential elections just around the corner, the latest predictions from Polymarket suggest that Vice President Kamala Harris is slightly ahead. The odds indicate that she has a 50% chance of winning, compared to Donald Trump’s 49%.
Although the lead is not significant in numbers, it holds substantial importance, especially since VP Harris has been trailing behind the former President on Polymarket for a considerable time.
Impact of the Presidential Debate
For a while, Trump was leading the Polymarket predictions. However, the tables turned on September 10 when he participated in the first presidential debate against Harris.
The debate covered a wide range of topics, but notably, cryptocurrencies were not discussed. This lack of discussion left many in the crypto community waiting for clarity from both candidates on their stance towards digital assets.
Following the debate, it was evident that Trump’s performance did not meet expectations. Data from Polymarket indicated that 99% of voters believed Harris won the debate.
Before the debate, Trump was projected to win by 53%, with Harris at 45%. However, immediately after the debate, the gap narrowed significantly, with both candidates at 49% each.
Trump’s Efforts to Lead the Prediction Polls
Seeing his declining election odds, Trump took to X (formerly Twitter) on September 12 to announce his upcoming live session on September 16. During the announcement, he disclosed the launch of the World Liberty Financial (WLF) project, spearheaded by his sons, Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump.
In his statement,
“We’re embracing the future with crypto and moving away from the slow and outdated big banks.”
However, the response to this announcement was less enthusiastic than anticipated, with lukewarm reactions from various members of the crypto community.
For instance, Colin Talks Crypto shared his thoughts on X about the development.
Trump’s Involvement in the Crypto Sphere
Although details are scarce, Trump has hinted that World Liberty Financial will operate as a decentralized finance (DeFi) platform for lending and borrowing.
This move marks the continuation of his increasing involvement in cryptocurrencies over the past 18 months. His interactions with the crypto world, such as appearances at Bitcoin conferences, acceptance of crypto donations, hosting NFT-themed events, and introducing Bitcoin merchandise, have garnered support from many in the crypto industry, despite his underwhelming debate performance.
Future Prospects
There is a chance that Trump could regain his lead on the Polymarket predictions once WLF is launched.
However, recent critiques of the WLF project have raised concerns, particularly regarding potential conflicts of interest in case of another presidential term. Even Nic Carter, a Trump advocate and partner at Castle Island Ventures, termed the initiative a “major misstep.”