US midterms: Crypto advocacy group announces candidates it is backing

Stand With Crypto, a crypto advocacy group, has revealed the candidates it would be supporting in the upcoming US midterm elections. The industry-aligned organisation Coinbase launched the group in 2023. Bloomberg reported on Wednesday (Sep 30) that Stand With Crypto would be supporting candidates running for Senate seats in 2026, including Republican Jon Husted in Ohio, Republican Ashley Hinson in Iowa and Democrat Chris Pappas in New Hampshire.

Besides the Senate seats, the crypto advocacy group said it had also endorsed several House of Representatives candidates, including Republican Mariannette Miller-Meeks in Iowa and Democrat Shomari Figures in Alabama. Notably, several polls show that Democrats will regain control of both the House and Senate in 2027.

A change in majority control of either chamber of Congress could affect how bills, such as the Digital Asset Market Clarity (CLARITY) Act, are taken up. Earlier this month, the crypto market structure bill failed to get enough votes in the Republican-controlled Senate after being passed in the House with bipartisan support in 2025. Thirty-two House candidates had received the group's support in August, whom it called "proven digital asset policy champions".

Money from the crypto industry has started reaching the candidates through political action committees (PACs) and direct donations to campaigns. Coinbase, Ripple Labs and Andreessen Horowitz back the Fairshake PAC that had pledged to initially spend $30 million in support of Husted in Ohio. The PAC has spent $82 million on candidates in the country as of June.

Stand With Crypto Executive Director Mason Lynaugh told Cointelegraph that there "isn’t any evidence that crypto industry organisations can buy any assurances of who will win a race." He added that Husted was a "proven pro-crypto lawmaker" and the fact that the Ohio lawmaker voted in favour of the CLARITY Act was why it had endorsed him.