Crypto Built Political Machine That Reshaped U.S. Elections

Crypto companies spent roughly $139 million in the 2024 election cycle through a network centered on the super PAC Fairshake and its affiliates, according to industry filings and campaign records. The network directed funds into 58 House and Senate contests and has helped assemble a war chest the industry says exceeds $220 million for the 2026 midterms.

The push followed the 2022 collapse of exchange FTX and an intensified enforcement campaign by the Securities and Exchange Commission. In 2023 the SEC opened about 46 crypto-related enforcement actions and pursued major cases involving Coinbase, Binance and Ripple. Industry leaders and investors responded by building political infrastructure to influence lawmakers and oversight of digital assets.

Andreessen Horowitz helped design a lobbying model adopted across the sector. Fairshake, backed by Coinbase, Andreessen Horowitz, Ripple and other firms, ran a cross-party operation. Two affiliates-Defend American Jobs, which focused on Republican candidates, and Protect Progress, which backed Democrats-routed money to candidates on both sides. The network reported spending about $139 million in 2024 and recorded an 85% win rate for candidates it supported. In New York the PAC spent $5.3 million supporting Democratic candidates.

Campaign activity often emphasized general candidate support rather than direct crypto policy messaging. Industry numbers indicate roughly one in ten incoming members of Congress received meaningful help from crypto-funded advertising. Many of those ads targeted incumbents on character or unrelated policy issues. Political operatives described the objective as creating leverage with lawmakers who will write and oversee rules for digital assets.

Regulatory outcomes shifted soon after. New leadership at the SEC under Paul Atkins dismissed a civil action against Coinbase in early 2025, dropped litigation against Binance shortly after, and closed an investigation into Robinhood’s crypto business without filing charges. Ripple resolved long-running litigation with a $50 million settlement and recovered $75 million held in escrow. In July 2025 Congress enacted the GENIUS Act, establishing a federal framework for stablecoins. By late 2025 the SEC removed mention of crypto from its 2026 examination priorities.

The political effort also targeted state and primary contests. Protect Progress spent $5 million supporting Christian Menefee in the Texas 18th District runoff and $2.8 million opposing Representative Al Green after his votes against the GENIUS Act and the Clarity Act. Crypto-backed groups reported more than $2.5 million in activity in Texas congressional races this year. The Tether-backed Fellowship PAC, led by former White House crypto adviser Bo Hines, reported $1.75 million in support of Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton in his Senate runoff against John Cornyn; Paxton won that contest.

Some lawmakers raised questions about the timing of regulatory closures. Representatives Maxine Waters and Brad Sherman identified at least 12 SEC cases the agency dismissed or closed since early 2024 and asked whether those actions correlated with industry political spending. Former SEC enforcement attorneys said the number of closures was unusual given the evidence the agency had reported in some matters. Industry representatives characterized political work as a response to enforcement-driven rulemaking rather than an attempt to influence outcomes directly.

The records show the sector has moved significant financial resources into electoral politics and plans to deploy them in the 2026 midterms.