PANews reported on November 8, according to Bloomberg, that the cryptocurrency industry spent about $135 million to support more than 50 candidates in the 2024 U.S. election cycle, including Democrats and Republicans, incumbents and challengers, candidates with a strong chance of winning and those with slim hopes. But they now have one common point: victory. In the elections on November 5, as of noon local time on Friday, all 48 candidates supported by the cryptocurrency industry's largest political action committee announced their victory. In the eight elections still being counted, candidates supported by the political action committee are leading in all but three of them.
This may surprise voters — candidates and ads supported by the cryptocurrency political action committee hardly mentioned the industry or its key issues (regulation). However, its main campaign vehicle Fairshake has become the largest single-issue super political action committee (Super PAC) in history. Fairshake and two other related super political action committees (Defend American Jobs and Protect Progress) are funded by industry giants such as Coinbase, Ripple Labs, and Andreessen Horowitz.
According to the consumer advocacy non-profit organization Public Citizen, its influential campaign activities far exceed those of traditional corporate donors, such as Koch Industries and Chevron. Since the landmark Supreme Court decision in 2010 that lifted restrictions on corporate political spending, this industry ranks second only to the fossil fuel industry in terms of total amounts deployed. Now, the industry is loudly touting its massive election spending and its results as evidence that it has become a political force that cannot be ignored, gearing up for the next legislative session and the 2026 midterm elections.
