WASHINGTON, D.C. — Former Sen. Sherrod Brown is facing a familiar opponent as he runs for reelection to the Senate: the cryptocurrency industry.
After spending $40 million to defeat Brown last year, crypto interests are preparing to spend big again.
What You Need To Know
- The crypto industry has amassed a warchest of $141 million ahead of the 2026 elections
- Fairshake, a super PAC funded by cryptocurrency companies, and its affiliates spent $40 million in last year’s Ohio Senate race
- The crypto industry opposes Brown due to his strong stance on regulation
Fairshake, a super PAC funded by cryptocurrency companies, announced last month it had $141 million in cash on hand to spend on electing pro-crypto candidates, already more than the $119 million Fairshake and its affiliates spent on the 2024 elections.
Crypto industry analysts said crypto’s growing influence on elections mirrors its growing size. The global value of the crypto market from $192 billion in 2019 to $4 trillion in 2025, an increase of 1,983%.
“This technology is being adopted faster than the internet itself. I mean, we just watched crypto go from $0 to $4 trillion in 15 years. So I think I think it’s kind of inevitable that it’s going to get very political,” said Sam Kearney, a cryptocurrency educator also known as the “Digital Asset Guy.”
Crypto interests oppose Brown because of his strong stance on regulating the industry. When he was chair of the Senate Banking Committee, Brown worked to block legislation that he said did not regulate the industry enough to protect consumers. His tenure on the committee coincided with the collapse of crypto platform FTX in 2022 due to fraud by its founder, Sam Bankman-Fried, an incident that damaged the industry’s reputation and underscored its vulnerability to risky practices.
However, those in the crypto industry have said overly stringent regulation would stifle innovation and hurt their businesses.
Brown wrote in a statement,
“Cryptocurrency is a part of America’s economy, and becoming more commonplace in Ohio and throughout the country. Just like what guides all my work, my goal is to make sure that as more people use cryptocurrency, it expands opportunity and lifts up Ohioans and they are not put at risk.”
Though Fairshake could not be reached for comment, spokespeople for the company have said it intends to continue supporting pro-crypto candidates in 2026 regardless of party.
“It will ultimately be more bipartisan. Kind of like the internet and like social media,” Kearney said.
The industry’s efforts appear to be paying off. In July, President Donald Trump signed into law the GENIUS Act, which regulates stablecoins. The Senate is currently poised to take up a bill already passed in the House that would set regulatory standards for digital assets other than stablecoins.
