Crypto Industry Tries to Tally Final Wins As U.S. Congressional Primaries Wind Down

In
the
final
stretch
of
several
U.S.
congressional
primaries,
crypto-backed
campaign-finance
efforts
are
trying
to
add
to
their
lists
of
friendly
members
of
Congress.
The
industry’s
political
action
committees
supported
candidates
in
Tuesday’s
primaries
in
Washington
state
and
Missouri,
and
they
devoted
$1.4
million
in
the
hopes
of
ousting
a
prominent
Democrat
in
Missouri.
Support
for
one
Arizona
Democrat
may
be
paying
off,
with
the
Yassamin
Ansari’s
race
moving
to
a
recount
with
her
still
holding
a
42-vote
lead.

After
a
very
tight
victory
last
week
in
Arizona
that’s
now
facing
a
recount,
the
cryptocurrency
industry’s
political
forces
are
shifting
their
attention
toward
some
of
the
final
U.S.
congressional
primaries
of
2024,
including
Tuesday’s
elections
in
Missouri
and
Washington
state.

The
political
action
committees
(PACs)
backed
by
crypto
firms
have
waged
a
$1.4
million
ad
campaign
against
Rep.
Cori
Bush
(D-Mo.),
one
of
the
standout
progressives
in
the
U.S.
House
of
Representatives
who
advocacy
group
Stand
With
Crypto
has

rated
with
an
F
on
digital
assets
issues.
And
the
PACs
have
recently
dropped
$1.5
million
into
Washington
state’s
6th
Congressional
District
to
support
Democrat
Emily
Randall,
according
to
a
filing
with
the
Federal
Election
Commission.

Meanwhile
in
Arizona,
the
industry
can

chalk
up
a
very
tentative
win
in
the
state’s
3rd
Congressional
District,
where
Yassamin
Ansari,
a
Democratic
former
vice
mayor
of
Phoenix
who
has
been
a
crypto
advocate,
took

a
42-vote
lead
at
the
final
count
from
last
week’s
election
there.
Under
state
rules,
that
race
now
goes
to
a
recount.

So
far,
the
focus
of
the
Fairshake
super
PAC
and
its
affiliated
committees
has
been
on
transforming
Congress
into
a
friendlier
entity
for
digital
assets
interests,
and
the
groups
have
shied
away
from
the
presidential
race,
despite
some
of
the
key
backers
of
the
PACs
loudly
supporting
former
President
Donald
Trump.

Fairshake PAC campaign wins if Ansari wins in Arizona

A
Fairshake
spokesman
declined
to
comment
on
the
live
races
on
Tuesday.

After
Tuesday’s
elections,
several
final
states
are
soon
finishing
their
primaries
–
including
Wisconsin,
Connecticut
and
Alaska
–
and
the
political
calendar
will
then
turn
entirely
toward
November’s
general
election.
Most
of
Fairshake’s
congressional
primary
victors
are
favored
to
win
their
fights
in
November,
potentially
adding
two
dozen
crypto
fans
from
both
political
parties
to
Congress
in
the
next
session.

Fairshake
has
used
its
$169
million
war
chest
–
virtually
unrivaled
in
current
U.S.
politics
–
to
support
dozens
of
candidates,
but
also
to
buy
ads
opposing
several.
Its
unlimited
advertising
spending,
an
allowed
category
of
“independent
expenditures”
by
super
PACS,
devoted
about
$10
million
to
derailing
the
Senate
hopes
of
Rep.
Katie
Porter
(D-Calif.)
and
$2.1
million
against
Rep.
Jamaal
Bowman
(D-N.Y.).
More
recently,
a
similar
effort
turned
toward
Bush
in
Missouri.

Fairshake-funded
ads
don’t
generally
address
crypto
issues,
and
–
by
law
–
they
can’t
be
directly
affiliated
with
the
campaigns.

Also
in
Missouri,
Fairshake’s
affiliates
kicked
in
about
$260,000
to
support
Republican
candidate
Robert
Onder,
a
state
senator,
in
the
crowded
3rd
Congressional
District
race.