Congressional Candidate Vows to Gauge Voter Sentiment With Blockchain

Brian Forde, former head of MIT's Digital Currency Initiative, is making that his new title.

The author of the White House memo on bitcoin during the Obama administration, Forde is looking to take his interest in cryptocurrency and blockchain technology to higher office - California's 45th District seat in the U.S. House of Representatives, to be exact.

Forde said during the Ethereal Summit in Queens, NY, on May 12 that he is running for office on a platform of bridging the gap between Congress and the crypto community.

What's particularly notable about Forde's mission is how he plans to use the technology - if elected - to help his constituents get their voices heard by recording their policy preferences on a blockchain.

Speaking to CoinDesk in a separate interview, Forde explained the rationale behind this plan.

"I'd be the first member of Congress to adopt blockchain voting to hear from my constituents about how they feel on the policies I'm about to vote on."

Forde wouldn't necessarily hold himself to his constituents' decisions.

What's perhaps more beneficial - especially to the tech-savvy blockchain community - is that Forde would be a knowledgeable representative that could communicate the industry's mission to sitting members of Congress.

Few people in Congress are technologically adept, Forde contended, a fact that was "Clearly on display" during Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg's testimony after the social media giant's recent scandal whereby third-party companies were collecting user's private data.

His role, Forde said, was to be a "Helpful ambassador."