The Commonwealth Unity Fund Super PAC has allocated over $850,000 to support Republican John Deaton’s campaign for the U.S. Senate from Massachusetts, which seeks to unseat Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren. The investment includes $450,000 for direct mail and $500,000 for media buys, with additional spending exceeding $300,000 on media placements in July.
Deaton is a prominent lawyer and crypto advocate and one of three Republicans competing to represent Massachusetts in the Senate starting in 2025.
Source: Eleanor Terrett
PAC, which has received significant contributions from the crypto industry, including a $1 million donation from Ripple, is supporting Deaton’s candidacy.
Deaton’s senate candidacy against Warren gains support
Earlier this year, Gemini co-founders Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss contributed $6,600 directly to Deaton’s campaign, the maximum allowable amount for an individual for both primary and general election campaigns. The Winklevoss twins announced in July that they would donate $1 million to Deaton, though it remains uncertain how these funds will be allocated.
Other donors include Cardano boss Charles Hoskinson, Kraken Chairman Jesse Powell, and Anthony Scaramucci, President Trump’s former communications director and founder of the crypto hedge fund SkyBridge Capital. Finally, the CEO and CLO of Ripple Labs, Brad Garlinghouse and Stuart Alderoty, have also given Deaton their financial backing.
As of July 31, Deaton had gathered around $1.7 million for his campaign for the Senate in 2024, with roughly $1 million in cash. In contrast, by July, Senator Warren had collected approximately $6.4 million since January 2023, with about $4.9 million in liquid assets.
The Massachusetts primary, set for September 3, is expected to be a key battleground for contributions from the cryptocurrency community in the 2024 US elections. On August 6, candidates for the US House of Representatives for four districts across three states, backed by the Fairshake Super PAC and its affiliates, won their primaries after spending over $4 million on media buys.
Deaton launches his senate campaign with a strong legal background
Deaton, the cryptocurrency and Mesothelioma attorney, officially launched his bid to unseat U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren in February, kicking off a campaign season that has already seen the pair trade attacks and barbed comments.
Deaton is an active voice on crypto issues through channels, including his website, CryptoLaw. Just recently at a Bitcoin 2024 conference in Nashville he highlighted his commitment to cryptocurrency while addressing the audience.
I just disclosed to the Federal Election Commission that of all my net worth, 82% is in Bitcoin.
Deaton
However, not everyone in the cryptocurrency world supports Deaton. Wyoming Senator Cynthia Lummis, who holds a significant amount of Bitcoin, endorsed Republican Ian Cain over Deaton in July. Senator Lummis cited Cain’s understanding of the “digital economy” and his support for innovation as reasons for her endorsement.
As of June, several polls indicated that Senator Warren was leading by at least 20 points against Cain and Deaton. She is running unopposed in the Democratic primary.
