As early voting for the 2024 U.S. election is already underway in several states, cryptocurrency-backed political action committees (PACs) have reported approximately $1.3 million in expenditures to support campaigns for both Democratic and Republican candidates running for the House of Representatives.
An Oct. 17 filing with the Federal Election Commission (FEC) revealed that the Fairshake PAC spent over $900,000 on media buys to support Democratic Representative Thomas Suozzi in New York’s 3rd Congressional District. The same PAC also disclosed spending more than $60,000 on media buys for Democratic Representative Yadira Caraveo in Colorado’s 8th Congressional District.
Crypto Super PACs have been actively participating in the 2024 election season, channeling funds into races that could determine the control of the Senate and House of Representatives in 2025. Since its inception, Fairshake has raised over $169 million in contributions, using these funds to back candidates through media buys or through affiliate PACs like Defend American Jobs and Protect Progress.
Defend American Jobs, which focuses on supporting Republican candidates, reported on Oct. 17 that it spent roughly $107,000 each on media buys for Arkansas Representative French Hill, Kentucky Representative Andy Barr, and Michigan Representative Bill Huizenga. Representative Hill currently chairs the digital assets subcommittee and is vying for the chairmanship of the full Financial Services Committee in 2025, contingent upon Republicans retaining control of the House.
The influx of millions of dollars from crypto interest groups may be impacting political candidates in the 2024 races, both in primaries and the general election. While individual donors can contribute either cash or cryptocurrency to federal candidates, including Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump or Vice President Kamala Harris’ PAC, much of the funding from crypto-backed PACs like Fairshake is directed towards candidates vying for seats in the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives.
“What you’re seeing is the upset of an industry that I think from the inside we feel has been really unfairly maligned,” Fireblocks head of legal and compliance Jason Allegrante told Cointelegraph, referencing the fallout from the collapse of crypto exchange FTX. “I think this industry wants nothing more than to have the opportunity to compete with legacy industries.”
With early voting already taking place in many states, the general election is scheduled for Nov. 5.