Crypto PAC Spends $4 Million to Back Georgia Democrat

Fairshake, a political action committee backed by the cryptocurrency industry, emerged as a major force in US elections after spending more than $130 million on advertising and media during the 2024 cycle. Its affiliate Protect Progress has continued supporting congressional candidates in 2026, but the comparatively modest outlay in one Massachusetts district marks a narrower intervention and renews scrutiny of the industry’s influence over lawmakers and digital-asset policy.

Federal Election Commission records as of Sept. 1, 2026, showed Protect Progress spent just over $189,000 to support Representative Jake Auchincloss’s reelection in Massachusetts’ 4th congressional district. Democratic challenger Jason Poulos said some of the money funded AI-generated campaign mailers and, in an Aug. 16 letter, urged Auchincloss to publicly renounce the group’s involvement. Poulos also alleged that Auchincloss had directly received $77,500 from crypto-industry sources since 2020.

Protect Progress, a political action committee funded largely by Coinbase and Ripple, has become part of the crypto industry’s push to elect lawmakers viewed as supportive of digital-asset policy. Its intervention in Florida’s 24th Congressional District underscores how the sector is using campaign spending to shape the makeup of Congress as US lawmakers continue to debate rules for cryptocurrencies and related markets.

The PAC has spent more than $2 million on advertising opposing a Democratic candidate in the Florida district who is backed by an incumbent lawmaker with a record of voting against digital-asset legislation. The ads make little direct mention of cryptocurrency, indicating that Protect Progress is framing its intervention around broader political themes even as the spending reflects the industry’s effort to influence congressional races.

Michigan’s 13th Congressional District, anchored by Detroit, is safely Democratic, making its primary the decisive contest in most election cycles. Shri Thanedar has represented the seat since 2023, when his election left majority-Black Detroit without Black representation in Congress for the first time in decades. The race also became a test of the crypto industry’s expanding political influence, with Fairshake affiliate Protect Progress backing lawmakers viewed as favorable to digital-asset legislation.

In the Aug. 4, 2026 Democratic primary, state Rep. Donavan McKinney defeated two-term incumbent Thanedar, 51.9% to 48.1%, ending the congressman’s bid for a third term. Protect Progress, Fairshake’s Democratic-focused affiliate, had deployed more than $2 million supporting Thanedar across the 2024 and 2026 election cycles. The spending failed to secure the seat, underscoring the limits of outside money even in a closely fought race.

Protect Progress is an affiliate of Fairshake, the crypto-focused political action committee network backed by industry heavyweights including Ripple Labs and Coinbase. The groups aim to elect candidates viewed as supportive of digital-asset legislation. Democratic Representative Shri Thanedar of Michigan’s 13th Congressional District has voted for the CLARITY Act, GENIUS Act and Promoting Innovation in Blockchain Development Act, making his primary a test of the crypto industry’s growing influence in Washington.

Federal Election Commission filings available as of July 21, 2026, showed Protect Progress had spent more than $986,000 on advertising supporting Thanedar and opposing Michigan state Representative Donavan McKinney. The outlay came about two weeks before the Aug. 4 Democratic primary, whose winner advances to November’s general election. The group also spent roughly $1 million backing Thanedar in 2024, when he won the primary with 54.9% of the vote and the general election with 68.6%. Fairshake and its affiliates reported a $191 million war chest.

Fairshake, a crypto industry-backed super PAC, has emerged as a major force in US elections by supporting candidates viewed as favorable to digital-asset policy. Its Democratic-focused affiliate, Protect Progress, spent about $1 million backing Representative Shri Thanedar in 2024, when he won his primary with 54.9% of the vote. The group’s renewed involvement underscores the industry’s effort to build support in Congress across party lines.

Federal Election Commission data available as of July 20, 2026, showed Protect Progress had spent more than $986,000 on advertising to support Thanedar and oppose challenger Donavan McKinney in Michigan’s 13th Congressional District. McKinney accused the crypto lobby of trying to sway the August 4 Democratic primary. Fairshake and its affiliates have reported $191 million in reserves for key races during the 2026 election cycle.

The U.S. crypto industry has increasingly sought to influence congressional elections through Fairshake and its affiliated political action committees, backing candidates with industry-friendly positions. Primaries can effectively decide seats in safe districts, so the spending could reshape the Congress taking office in January 2027. It has also fueled a backlash among Democrats against outside financial support.

New York, Maryland and Utah held primaries on June 23, 2026, with crypto-backed PACs spending more than $8 million in total. Several candidates they supported won, including one in a Maryland congressional race where Protect Progress spent about $5.5 million. Some Democrats, meanwhile, urged candidates to reject money from wealthy crypto donors.

The crypto industry is seeking to elect lawmakers who support a digital-asset regulatory framework by channeling money into U.S. congressional races through political action committees. Protect Progress and Defend American Jobs are both affiliated with Fairshake. The latter, funded primarily by Coinbase and Ripple Labs, disclosed a $193 million campaign war chest in January 2026, underscoring the industry's growing bipartisan influence.

After the two PACs spent a combined roughly $3.5 million on advertising, all 11 candidates they backed won or advanced in primaries in California, New Jersey and South Dakota on June 2, 2026, securing places in the November general election. They included Democrats Ted Lieu, Zoe Lofgren and Rob Menendez, as well as Republican U.S. Senator Mike Rounds.

The crypto industry is seeking to influence U.S. congressional elections through super political action committees led by Fairshake and its Democratic-aligned affiliate Protect Progress and Republican-aligned affiliate Defend American Jobs. The groups entered 2026 with more than $193 million. The GENIUS Act passed in July 2025, while digital-asset market structure legislation remains under negotiation, making the balance of power in Congress pivotal to the direction of regulation.

Six crypto industry-backed candidates won Texas primary runoffs on May 26. Democrat Christian Menefee defeated Representative Al Green, while Republican Ken Paxton beat Senator John Cornyn with more than 63% of the vote. Four other supported candidates also advanced. The PACs spent more than $10 million on advertising, and Fairshake said it would expand its support for pro-crypto candidates.

Defend American Jobs is a crypto industry-backed political action committee that targets congressional candidates who support digital-asset policies. Indiana Republican Representative James Baird voted in favor of stablecoin payments and digital-asset market structure legislation, making him an important congressional ally in the industry's view.

Defend American Jobs spent about $514,000 supporting Baird ahead of Indiana's May 5, 2026, Republican primary, primarily on campaign advertising. The latest results showed that Baird had won the primary in the state's 4th Congressional District, securing the Republican nomination to contest the November general election.