A Kamala Harris-themed memecoin, KAMA, has surged nearly 250% since Thursday amid increasing calls for Joe Biden to bow out of the presidential race after a poor debate performance against Donald Trump. This rise comes as Biden-themed memecoin, Jeo Boden (BODEN), has tanked nearly 75% since the debate last week.
Memecoin Market Movements
Kamala Horris (KAMA), a Solana token featuring a caricature of the Vice President, has seen its market cap grow from $3.5 million to nearly $11.9 million since the June 27 debate, according to Dex Screener. Despite reaching a peak market cap of $22.2 million on July 3, KAMA’s value has slightly dipped, now trading just above 1 cent after peaking at over 2 cents.
Meanwhile, Jeo Boden (BODEN), a similarly themed memecoin for President Biden, has plummeted by over 22% in the past day and lost 73.4% over the week, per CoinGecko.
Debate Performance and Political Fallout
The June 27 debate performance by Biden has been widely criticized, with analysts noting his raspy voice and frequent loss of train of thought. Biden, 81, attributed his performance issues to a cold, over-preparing, and jet lag, despite being in the same time zone for the week leading up to the debate.
This performance has sparked a wave of pressure from voters, media outlets, and Democratic lawmakers for Biden to step down. Polls indicate growing concerns about Biden’s ability to beat Trump in the upcoming election.
- A FiveThirtyEight poll shows Trump leading Biden by 2.3 percentage points.
- A July 3 New York Times and Siena College poll indicates that three-quarters of voters believe Biden is too old for the presidency.
- A CNN poll from July 2 reveals that 75% of voters think Democrats have a better chance with a different candidate.
Political Betting and Reactions
Biden’s chances of dropping out of the race have surged on the crypto prediction platform Polymarket, with odds increasing from 19% pre-debate to 64%. At least four House Democrats have voiced that Biden should step down, with a significant portion of the caucus sharing this sentiment. Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi also stated that questioning Biden’s performance is legitimate.
The Boston Globe’s editorial board, along with those of The New York Times, The New Yorker, and The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, have all urged Biden to step down and allow another candidate to challenge Trump.
