It was only a matter of time until politicians realised the revenue-raising potential of NFTs and tried to take advantage.
Here's a rundown of the worst attempts...
Shrina Kurani
Source.
Democrat Shrina Kurani’s NFT flop is disappointing for several reasons. It had potential promising real-world utility like interactions with climate scientists. The tokens themselves are insipid, featuring simplistic sketches of Kurani set against similarly low-quality backgrounds. No wonder they raised a measly $6,610.
The Lone Star Collection
Source.
Another effort from the Democrats, ‘The Lone Star Collection,’ looks like it was made using Windows 98. It consists of 52 NFTs portraying Texas senators who protested against Republican voting restrictions. The quality is comically poor, with the senators rendered as 8-bit heads spinning against heavily pixelated backgrounds.
Scott Jensen
Source.
Minnesotan senator Jensen's playing cards have a nightmarish quality! One shows him cradling a calf with a manic look in his eye; he's holding a corn dog aloft as he stares (philosophically?) into the distance. Another features him dressed as a ringmaster posing in front of an elephant.
Morris County Republican Committee
Worse than this collection's NFTs was the accompanying slideshow designed to convince confused Republicans of the benefits of blockchain technology. It lists successful NFTs including “the original nyan cat meme” and (confusingly) “a tweet by [...] Mark Cuban.” Judging by the terrible sales, none of these explanations resonated.
Blake Masters
Source.
Masters launched his 'Zero to One Origins' collection to fund a Senate run. Bizarrely, the NFTs just show the front cover of Masters' book revolving slowly. Even more bizarrely, all 99 NFTs sold out! The sales are due to business enthusiasts who wanted access to Masters for his entrepreneurial skills.
Jared Polis
Source.
Colorado Governor Polis announced that he was “beyond excited” to release this collection. Readers might be forgiven for expecting great things, but the NFTs are as basic as it gets. They feature Polis staring dead-eyed off a series of surreal backgrounds. One shows a sky raining shoes while a dog shoots lasers from its eyes.
Donald Trump
Source.
The DJT's infamous collection variously portrays Trump as a superhero with laser eyes, a shotgun-toting cowboy and there's even a bizarre Trump version of the Statue of Liberty. Delusions of grandeur aside, the cards look as though they were created by an intern at Fiverr using the free trial of Photoshop. Trump might have stolen the images, too.
