Stand With Crypto has announced bipartisan endorsements for Senate and House candidates ahead of the midterm elections, focusing on their stances on cryptocurrency.
Overview
- Stand With Crypto has released its first bipartisan endorsements for Senate and House candidates, reflecting a strategic push in the lead-up to midterm elections.
- The organization evaluates candidates based on their cryptocurrency policies, irrespective of their party affiliation.
- These endorsements follow the recent defeat of the Clarity Act in the Senate, highlighting the growing political engagement in the crypto industry.
Stand With Crypto, an advocacy group initiated by Coinbase in 2023, has announced its initial endorsements for Senate and House candidates as it ramps up its electoral efforts less than a month before the midterm elections. This announcement comes shortly after the Senate's failure to pass the Clarity Act, which aimed to provide regulatory clarity for the cryptocurrency market.
The organization has endorsed candidates in three Senate races, including Republican Senator Jon Husted in Ohio, who is facing off against Sherrod Brown, a vocal opponent of cryptocurrency and a former Senate Banking Committee chair. Other endorsements include Republican Ashley Hinson in Iowa and Democrat Chris Pappas in New Hampshire, both of whom have demonstrated supportive stances on crypto policy.
In the House, Stand With Crypto backs Republican Mariannette Miller-Meeks from Iowa and Democrat Shomari Figures from Alabama. The group plans to increase its advertising efforts in six key House races, building on its earlier endorsement of 32 incumbents considered "proven digital asset policy champions."
The timing of these endorsements is particularly notable given the recent narrow defeat of the Clarity Act, which failed in a 49-50 vote, with Democratic senators united against it due to concerns over President Donald Trump's cryptocurrency dealings. Stand With Crypto views this setback as significant, warning that lawmakers' votes will be tracked on its public scorecard, holding them accountable during elections.
Mason Lynaugh, the Executive Director of Stand With Crypto, emphasized that the organization, which has over three million supporters, is now fully committed to electing candidates who advocate for cryptocurrency. The group's approach focuses on voter mobilization rather than direct campaign contributions, unlike super PACs, although candidates with favorable ratings may receive support from industry-aligned PACs.
For instance, the Fairshake super PAC has launched a $30 million campaign against Brown, amidst a broader trend of approximately $200 million in political spending related to cryptocurrency this election cycle. The endorsement of Husted is particularly crucial; a victory for Brown could strengthen critics of cryptocurrency on the Senate Banking Committee, making Ohio a vital battleground for assessing the political influence of the crypto sector.
The message from the cryptocurrency community is clear: with legislative progress stalled, the focus is now shifting to the electoral arena.
