Crypto super PACs spent more than $176 million on the midterms, but Democrats gained control of both chambers of Congress. Reuters put spending at about $176 million across 100 seats, including primaries, compared with more than $130 million in 2024. Fairshake and PACs affiliated with Fairshake spent $154.5 million across 89 races. Sherrod Brown's Ohio victory over Republican Jon Husted represented the crypto industry's largest electoral defeat in the 2026 midterms. The Democratic sweep puts Senator Elizabeth Warren, a prominent crypto critic, in position to lead the Senate Banking Committee.
Decentralization Research Center executive director Kyle Bligen said the next Congress would create a fundamentally different policy environment and substantially increase scrutiny of crypto. Fairshake has more than $67 million remaining ahead of the 2028 elections. Fairshake spokesperson Geoff Vetter said lawmakers would choose between protecting consumers and American jobs or resisting progress. Vetter said Fairshake would monitor lawmakers and described 2028 as “a new map.”
Crypto PACs committed more than $64 million to retaining Senator Husted in Ohio, the industry's largest electoral spending effort. Former Senator Brown won the special election to finish former Senator JD Vance's term, which ends in January 2029. Brown could pursue a senior position on the Senate Agriculture Committee, which oversees the Commodity Futures Trading Commission. Fairshake had spent $40 million in 2024 helping Bernie Moreno defeat Brown for Ohio's other Senate seat. Some industry leaders presented that earlier result as a warning to Congress, with Gemini co-founder Cameron Winklevoss declaring, “This is what happens when you mess with the crypto army”.
Independent expenditures in this year's Ohio race exceeded $350 million, placing crypto funding within a much larger flow of outside spending. Brown made crypto spending a campaign issue, writing, “I'll be damned if crypto billionaires decide this race”. Brown's victory may reduce the perception in Washington that opposing crypto PACs brings electoral punishment. Before the election, a Republican crypto lobbyist told Politico that a Brown victory would “neuter Fairshake's perceived Sword of Damocles.”
Senator Pete Ricketts retained Nebraska's Senate seat after Fairshake affiliate Defend American Jobs spent $13.5 million against independent challenger Dan Osborn. Vetter described Fairshake as the Nebraska Senate race's largest spender and credited Fairshake with helping Ricketts win. Vetter said Fairshake contributed meaningfully to competitive victories nationwide in 2026 and would repeat that performance in 2028. Fairshake's other Senate victories included Barry Moore in Alabama and Andy Barr in Kentucky, both Republican strongholds.
The Fairshake network spent roughly $10 million against Juliana Stratton in Illinois' Democratic primary without preventing Stratton from securing the nomination. Stratton subsequently won the Senate seat. John Deaton lost in Massachusetts despite roughly $700,000 from the crypto-backed Commonwealth Unity Fund supporting Deaton's election. Ken Paxton received crypto PAC support during Paxton's successful Texas Republican runoff against John Cornyn. However, Paxton subsequently lost to James Talarico. Digital assets subcommittee chair Bryan Steil lost a House race to Democrat Mitchell Berman despite receiving $1.9 million in crypto PAC funding.
The change in congressional control could delay crypto legislation. However, BitGo CEO and co-founder Mike Belshe said the election outcome would not change the industry's trajectory. Belshe said crypto had advanced under different administrations and political majorities. Belshe said the GENIUS Act was now law and stablecoin rules were progressing. Belshe said regulators were continuing work on tokenization and digital asset markets.
Democratic victories could also add crypto supporters to the Senate. Advocacy group Stand With Crypto classified 19 winning Senate candidates as pro-crypto and eight as anti-crypto, with 33 of 35 races called by 9:45 p.m. UTC on November 4. Talarico supported the Texas Bitcoin reserve as a state lawmaker despite facing crypto PAC opposition in the Senate race. Stand With Crypto rates Talarico as strongly supportive of crypto. Fireblocks US policy director Jessica Martinez said many incoming lawmakers had limited crypto records, making early education important for shaping the Democratic policy agenda.
Crypto PACs Spend $176M in Midterms as Democrats Gain Congressional Control
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Summary
Crypto market groups spent $176 million in the 2026 midterms, but Democrats still won control of Congress. Fairshake and allies poured $154.5 million into 89 races, yet lost key contests like Ohio’s Senate race. Elizabeth Warren, a known crypto critic, is set to lead the Senate Banking Committee. Analysts say the next Congress could bring more regulatory pressure. Fairshake still holds $67 million for 2028, calling it “a new map.” Crypto analysis suggests the political landscape will shape market moves in the coming years.
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