Crypto groups spend $176m across 100-plus races as US midterms decide Congress

Key points

• Crypto industry groups have spent about $176m across more than 100 races in the 2026 cycle, Reuters reports
• Fairshake, backed by Coinbase, Ripple and Andreessen Horowitz, leads spending through Defend American Jobs and Protect Progress
• The Blockchain Association lists 62 priority races, including 18 Senate and 44 House contests

Crypto industry spending has reached about $176m across more than 100 races in the 2026 US midterms, as voters went to the polls on 3 November to decide control of Congress, Cointelegraph reports. All 435 House seats and 35 Senate seats were contested, with Republicans defending majorities in both chambers.

In early October it backed 32 incumbent House candidates, 19 Republicans and 13 Democrats, all of whom voted for the CLARITY Act in 2025. The Winklevoss-backed Digital Freedom Fund and Fellowship PAC have also spent on races.

The Blockchain Association's election dashboard names 62 priority contests, 18 in the Senate and 44 in the House. Ohio has drawn about $63m in crypto spending in the race between Republican Jon Husted and Democrat Sherrod Brown, a longtime crypto critic.

The results could shape US cryptocurrency regulation, including the stalled CLARITY Act. A Democratic win in either chamber could also bring more scrutiny of Trump's crypto ventures; Reuters reported in the week of 26 October that Democratic lawmakers were preparing further investigations into possible conflicts of interest involving his family's businesses.

What to watch: Results in the congressional races are still being counted, and Cointelegraph says it will add further information as it becomes available.

Read the full story on Cointelegraph →