Crypto Industry Tries to Tally Final Wins As U.S. Congressional Primaries Wind Down

In the final stretch of many congressional primaries in the US, crypto-backed campaign finance efforts are looking to add to the list of friendly members of Congress.

Industry political action committees backed candidates in Tuesday’s primaries in Washington state and Missouri, committing $1.4 million in hopes of unseating a leading Democrat in Missouri.

The support for an Arizona Democrat may be paying off. Yassamin Ansari’s race is headed to a recount, though he still holds a 42-vote lead.

After a very close victory in Arizona last week, prompting a recount, political forces in the crypto space are focusing on the final U.S. congressional primaries of 2024, including Tuesday’s elections in Missouri and Washington.

Political action committees (PACs) backed by crypto companies have launched a $1.4 million ad campaign against Rep. Cori Bush (D-Mo.), one of the leading progressives in the U.S. House of Representatives and whom Stand With Crypto has given an F grade on digital assets. And the PACs recently invested $1.5 million in Washington state’s 6th Congressional District in support of Democrat Emily Randall, according to a filing with the Federal Election Commission.

Meanwhile, in Arizona, the industry could pull off a shy victory in the state’s 3rd Congressional District, where Democratic former Phoenix deputy mayor Yassamin Ansari, a crypto advocate, held a 42-vote lead at the final count in last week’s election. Under state rules, that race is now headed to a recount.

The focus of the Fairshake super PAC and its affiliated committees so far has been to transform Congress into a more friendly body to digital asset interests, and the groups have stayed away from the presidential race, despite some of the PACs’ key supporters vociferously supporting former President Donald Trump.

A spokesperson for Fairshake declined to comment on the live-streamed races on Tuesday.

Following Tuesday’s election, several final states will soon complete their primaries — including Wisconsin, Connecticut and Alaska — and the political calendar will then turn fully toward the general election in November. Most of Fairshake’s congressional primary winners are likely to win their fights in November, meaning two dozen crypto enthusiasts from both political parties will be joining Congress in the next session.

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Fairshake has used his $169 million battle fund to support dozens of candidates—nearly unrivaled in contemporary U.S. politics—but he has also bought ads opposing a few. His unlimited ad spending, a category of “independent expenditures” allowed by super PACS, has spent nearly $10 million to derail the Senate hopes of Rep. Katie Porter (D-Calif.) and $2.1 million against Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-N.Y.). More recently, a similar effort was directed at Bush in Missouri.

Ads funded by Fairshake generally do not address crypto issues and cannot be directly linked to campaigns by law.

In Missouri, Fairshake affiliates donated about $260,000 to support Republican candidate Robert Onder for state senator in the crowded 3rd Congressional District race.