Crypto’s midterm spending spree stumbles as Democrats rack up big wins

In a disappointing midterm election, the crypto industry's $200 million spending spree fell short as some high-profile targets, such as the Senate race in Ohio, did not yield favorable results for the industry. Despite crypto political action committees spending over $60 million to defeat Democrat Sherrod Brown, the Ohio senator decisively won his race, according to the source.

The Ohio race, one of the most expensive in Senate history, was viewed as a significant test of crypto's political influence following the Senate's vote against advancing the Clarity Act in September, a development that bolstered the industry's connection to former President Donald Trump. Analyst Jaret Seiberg noted that the crypto's political environment had soured, citing Fairshake, the industry's leading super PAC, as one of the few successful campaigns, spending $13.5 million to defeat Nebraska independent candidate Dan Osborn, who lost to Republican Senator Pete Ricketts, a supporter of the Clarity Act.

Fairshake had also spent heavily on 32 House races, with 19 Republicans and 13 Democrats, resulting in victories for 29 out of 34 races, with several still undecided. The industry has spent around half a billion dollars in the past two elections to build a bipartisan alliance of congressional allies, with the aim of promoting adoption of dollar-backed tokens, known as stablecoins.

The Clarity Act's defeat and the prospect of Democratic oversight and investigations have raised concerns for the crypto industry, with executives expressing reservations about potential scrutiny of Trump's crypto business dealings.