Crypto PAC Fairshake Spends $20 Million to Help Pro-Crypto Candidates Win Primaries in Three U.S. States

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.

Fairshake, the crypto-industry super PAC network backed by Coinbase, Ripple and Andreessen Horowitz, has spent across party lines through affiliates including Protect Progress, its Democratic-facing arm. The groups aim to elect candidates friendly to digital-asset legislation, making their 2026 midterm campaign a test of whether a large industry war chest can translate into durable influence over Congress and rules governing crypto markets.

In the Aug. 18 primaries, several Fairshake-backed candidates won or advanced, but Protect Progress failed in Florida’s 24th Congressional District. Miami-Dade Commissioner Oliver Gilbert captured the Democratic nomination despite $2,056,911 in opposition spending by the group. The Miami Herald said the PAC’s ads repackaged three of its articles with fabricated headlines to suggest Gilbert supported President Donald Trump’s hard-line immigration policies. The loss underscored the limits of outside spending even as Fairshake scored victories elsewhere.

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.

Fairshake and its affiliates, Protect Progress and Defend American Jobs, are funded by major crypto companies including Coinbase and Ripple Labs. The network is seeking to build a bipartisan bloc in Congress that favors clearer rules for digital assets. Its spending matters because the next Congress will shape the fate and implementation of market-structure legislation, including the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act, or CLARITY Act, which would clarify federal oversight of crypto markets.

After Protect Progress spent about $1 million backing incumbent Democratic Representative Shri Thanedar in Michigan, Thanedar lost the Aug. 4 primary. Fairshake and its allied groups have now shifted to congressional contests in Florida, Alaska and Wyoming, committing more than $1.5 million to advertising ahead of all three states’ Aug. 18 primaries. The buys largely support bipartisan House and Senate candidates who previously voted for the CLARITY Act, underscoring the industry’s effort to reward lawmakers aligned with its regulatory agenda.

Fairshake has emerged as the cryptocurrency industry’s leading election vehicle, using support from Coinbase, Ripple Labs and Andreessen Horowitz to back congressional candidates from both parties who favor digital-asset legislation. The super political action committee said in January 2026 that it controlled a $193 million war chest, underscoring the sector’s push to shape lawmakers and secure clearer US rules for crypto markets, stablecoins and blockchain businesses.

Republican Bill Huizenga and Democrats Suzan DelBene, Kim Schrier and Marilyn Strickland advanced in Michigan and Washington primaries held on Aug. 4. The results extended Fairshake’s record of helping crypto-friendly incumbents and candidates, although its network suffered a notable setback in Michigan’s 13th District: Donavan McKinney defeated Shri Thanedar despite Fairshake affiliate Protect Progress spending more than $986,000 on advertisements supporting Thanedar and opposing McKinney.

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 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.

Fairshake is a super political action committee backed by crypto companies including Coinbase and Ripple. Its affiliate Protect Progress focuses on Democratic races, while Defend American Jobs supports Republican candidates. The network spent more than $130 million in 2024 and is now intervening in the 2026 midterm elections to expand the pro-crypto bloc in Congress, with implications for regulatory legislation including the CLARITY Act.

Federal Election Commission filings showed that Fairshake-affiliated PACs had spent $7.2 million in Georgia, Texas, Nebraska, Alabama and Kentucky as of May 7, 2026. Protect Progress accounted for about $1.6 million and Defend American Jobs about $5.6 million. On May 26, Christian Menefee, who received $5 million in campaign support, defeated Al Green in Texas. The groups disclosed more than $3.1 million in additional advertising spending in Maryland on June 2.

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.

Fairshake is a crypto Super PAC funded by industry players including Coinbase, Ripple and a16z. It uses independent expenditures to influence congressional elections and digital-asset regulation. Backed by about $193 million in funds at the start of 2026, the group viewed the Illinois primary as a key test of the industry’s political mobilization.

Fairshake reported spending about $8.6 million on Illinois congressional races on March 8, 2026, mainly on media advertisements opposing candidates. By the March 17 Democratic primary, spending against Lieutenant Governor Juliana Stratton had risen to about $10 million, while another $2.5 million was spent targeting La Shawn Ford. Both won their races that day, dealing the PAC a major setback.