U.S. Senate candidate Austin Petersen, who is known for his Bitcoin (BTC[1]) advocacy, lost the Republican primary election[2] Aug. 7.
According to unofficial results published by the Missouri Secretary of State, Petersen lost the battle to Attorney General Josh Hawley, who received 58.6 percent of the 663,553 votes. Hawley will go on to face to Democratic Missouri Sen. Claire McCaskill in the general election. Petersen tweeted:[3]
“Sorry I couldn't pull out a win for us, friends. My faults as a candidate are my own, and not the fault of our activists. I am not a perfect messenger. One day soon I believe we will see more leaders who rise up and fight for our cause more fiercely and more successfully than I.”
In February, ABC News reported[4] that Petersen’s campaign for Senate received 24 donations in Bitcoin amounting to just under $10,000 total. One such donation was reportedly the largest BTC donation ever received in a federal election.
Upon the receipt on Dec. 20, the contribution[5] of 0.284 BTC was purportedly converted to U.S. dollars. At the time the donation was worth over $4,500, putting the donation over the Federal election limit of $2,700 per individual. The candidate’s website[6] explained that the first $2,700 would go toward activities in the primary election, while the remaining amount would be used in the general election. Petersen’s campaign manager Jeff Carson said on his behalf:
"I think it goes without saying we're going to see a lot more of [cryptocurrency] in terms of campaign contributions and campaign financing... Austin is personally a fan of competition in the marketplace, even when
