Written by Jesse Hamilton and published on May 3, 2026, the story breaks down the results of a new poll commissioned by CoinDesk and conducted by the research firm Public Opinion Strategies.
The major headline from the data is that 62% of U.S. voters do not trust the Trump administration to oversee the cryptocurrency sector.
Data Source : Coindesk
Despite the administration’s active and vocal push to embrace the crypto industry including President Trump’s own promotion of digital assets the broader American public remains highly skeptical of their approach to regulating the space.
The “Conflict of Interest” Factor
The poll reveals that a massive sticking point for voters is the intermingling of personal business interests and government regulation.
- Bipartisan Concern: 73% of voters oppose government officials having personal financial stakes in the crypto industry while simultaneously trying to regulate it.
- Republican Pushback: This isn’t just a concern for the political opposition. The data shows that 59% of Republican voters also disapprove of government officials mixing their own business interests with crypto regulation.
This public skepticism is bleeding directly into current legislative battles in Washington, particularly regarding the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act (a major piece of crypto market structure legislation). Because of the ethics concerns highlighted by voters in this poll, Democrats are actively pushing to include a ban on senior government officials maintaining personal crypto ties before the bill can move forward.
To understand why voters feel this way about the administration’s oversight, it helps to look at the other findings CoinDesk released from the same survey series. Overall, the American public is still largely viewing crypto with a wary eye:
- Extremely Low Priority: Crypto is essentially at the bottom of the electorate’s priority list. Only 1% of respondents ranked it as their top concern heading into the midterms.
- Banks Still Dominate: When it comes to financial access and inclusion, the traditional system wins by a landslide. 65% of voters trust banks, compared to just 5% who favor crypto.
- Economic Pessimism: A solid 60% of those surveyed believe crypto will ultimately be a “mostly negative force” in the economy, and more than half said recent news coverage has only worsened their impression of the industry.
Ultimately, the takeaway is that while the crypto industry is spending heavily on the 2026 midterms to secure favorable policies, the average voter is not yet on board with the technology, and a clear majority specifically distrusts the current administration’s ability to oversee it impartially.
