-
Super
Tuesday’s
array
of
congressional
primary
results
could
have
some
implications
for
who
will
be
minding
the
store
in
Washington,
and
crypto
insiders
are
trying
to
have
their
say. -
Coinbase
CEO
Brian
Armstrong
argued
that
politicians
need
to
start
realizing
how
wide
a
constituency
crypto
enthusiasts
represent.
The
long
list
of
primary
elections
Tuesday
across
15
U.S.
states
will
steer
the
fates
of
many
seats
in
Congress
and
further
solidifies
the
presidential
showdown
later
this
year,
but
Coinbase
CEO
Brian
Armstrong
said
it’s
also
a
“chance
to
send
a
message”
to
federal
politicians
who’ve
declined
to
come
up
with
crypto
policies.
“They’re
still
not
taking
us
seriously,”
he
said
at
a
crypto
rally
in
California,
hosted
by
Coinbase-backed
political
group
Stand
With
Crypto
on
the
eve
of
so-called
Super
Tuesday.
He
argued
an
increasing
numbers
of
voters
are
interested
in
digital
assets.
“Suddenly
everybody
in
DC,
they’re
going
to
realize
this
is
just
good
politics,”
Armstrong
said,
suggesting
politicians
will
soon
realize
they
need
to
figure
out
crypto.
“If
I
want
to
be
elected,
I
need
to
go
understand
this
technology
and
represent
my
constituency.”
This
marks
the
second
congressional
campaign
season
in
which
the
crypto
industry
has
been
a
significant
presence,
steering
tens
of
millions
of
dollars
toward
friendly
candidates
or
against
skeptics
of
the
sector.
In
California,
the
top
two
Democrats
seeking
the
open
Senate
seat
represent
a
sharp
divide
over
crypto,
according
to
grades
maintained
on
Stand
With
Crypto’s
website.
U.S.
Rep.
Adam
Schiff
(D-Calif.)
has
an
“A”
on
the
site,
and
Rep.
Katie
Porter
(D-Calif.)
has
an
“F,”
based
on
remarks
they’ve
made
or
positions
they’ve
taken
on
crypto
legislation.
Porter
has
been
a
particular
target
of
Fairshake,
a
crypto
political
action
committee
(PAC)
that’s
spent
millions
to
undermine
her
Senate
run,
and
if
she
doesn’t
manage
to
make
the
top
two
in
today’s
voting,
she
won’t
make
the
general
election.
So
far,
polling
has
suggested
she’s
well
behind
Schiff
and
top
Republican
Steve
Garvey.
The
digital
assets
industry
is
also
keenly
interested
in
how
Democrat
Julie
Johnson
does
in
her
bid
to
represent
a
Texas
congressional
district,
and
the
same
for
Democrat
Shomari
Figures
in
Alabama.
Figures’
candidate
website
says
the
Washington
insider
hopes
to
“embrace
the
new
landscape
around
digital
assets,”
and
Johnson’s
site
contends
that
“Americans
can
benefit
from
crypto
innovation.”
In
both
of
those
congressional
races,
the
primary
ballot
is
crowded
with
candidates.
By
Wednesday,
the
field
of
politicians
fighting
for
spots
in
Congress
will
narrow
considerably.
In
the
election
cycle
two
years
ago,
industry
donations
focused
largely
on
sure-thing
candidates.
But
because
such
a
large
share
of
donations
came
from
the
leaders
of
defunct
exchange
FTX
and
its
disgraced
founder,
Sam
Bankman-Fried,
one
third
of
the
current
Congress
had
to
deal
with
the
sting
of
trying
to
explain
or
back
out
of
those
campaign
contributions.
After
the
failures
of
2022
–
which,
besides
FTX,
saw
a
number
of
crypto
lenders
and
a
few
mining
companies
file
for
bankruptcy
–
and
the
ongoing
legislative
debates
since
then,
crypto
has
become
a
more
divisive
political
issue.
Republicans
have
been
more
likely
to
come
out
in
staunch
support
of
the
industry,
so
friendly
Democrats
could
become
increasingly
difficult
to
find.
Also
on
Tuesday,
one
former
Democrat
–
Sen.
Kyrsten
Sinema
(I-Ariz.)
–
announced
she’d
be
stepping
down
at
the
end
of
the
year.
Sinema
was
partially
responsible
for
the
2021
infrastructure
bill
that
landed
a
legislative
blow
against
the
crypto
industry
in
its
tax
implications.
It
was
that
wound
that
helped
convince
the
industry
to
bolster
its
lobbying
and
campaign-finance
aspirations
in
2022.