Fairshake PAC’s $20M backing pays off in three US state primaries

Political action committees (PACs) aligned with and funded by the cryptocurrency industry notched a series of wins in three US state primaries on Tuesday, potentially setting a precedent for the 2026 midterm elections.

The Fairshake PAC and its affiliates poured a combined $20 million into supportive media for the races. The committee, largely funded by crypto companies Ripple Labs and Coinbase, is behind the Defend American Jobs PAC in supporting Republican candidates and Protect Progress PAC for Democrats considered to be “pro-crypto.”

Four Republican candidates and one Democrat won their respective primaries for US Senate and House of Representatives seats in Georgia and Kentucky, while one Alabama Republican will go to a runoff election.

“Fairshake’s 6-0 sweep tonight was a clear victory for pro-crypto leaders across the country,” Fairshake spokesperson Geoff Vetter told Cointelegraph. He said:

“This powerful bipartisan mandate is being heard across America from Georgia to Alabama to Kentucky.”

According to Federal Election Commission filings, Protect Progress spent more than $4.2 million to support Jasmine Clark, a Georgia representative running in the state’s 13th Congressional district. Defend American Jobs reported similar expenditures for media to support Republican candidates: $455,000 for Clay Fuller in Georgia’s 14th district, $709,000 for Houston Gaines in Georgia’s 10th district, $431,000 for Jim Kingston in Georgia’s 1st district and $7.2 million for Andy Barr for Kentucky’s US Senate seat.

Barry Moore, who was supported with $7.4 million from Defend American Jobs in his run for Alabama’s US Senate seat, will head to a runoff against state Attorney General Steve Marshall and Republican candidate Jared Hudson, after neither of the three not secured a majority of the vote in the primary.

Source: Jasmine Clark

Fairshake and its affiliates, backed by the crypto industry, are expected to spend millions of dollars in 2026 to “oppose anti-crypto politicians and support pro-crypto leaders,” according to a spokesperson in January. The company reported holding a $193 million war chest, far surpassing its 2024 expenditures of $130 million on media and ads to support congressional candidates.

Despite the multimillion-dollar expenditures, the crypto-backed PAC hasn’t always been successful in swaying enough voters before a key election or primary. Fairshake reportedly spent $8 million opposing Illinois Lieutenant Governor Juliana Stratton in her US Senate primary, but she beat other candidates with more than 40% of the vote.

Coming Texas run-off seen again testing crypto PAC support

Protect Progress has ramped up spending on supportive media for Democratic candidate Christian Menefee, running to unseat incumbent Al Green in Texas’ 18th Congressional District.

Representative Al Green addressing the House Financial Services Committee in March. Source: Al Green

According to FEC filings as of Tuesday, the PAC spent more than $4.1 million to support Menefee. It also reported spending more than $2.8 million on media to oppose Green, who has expressed anti-crypto views and voting records against the payment stablecoin bill GENIUS Act and digital asset market structure bill, the CLARITY Act.

Protect Progress reportedly spent more than $1.5 million opposing Green ahead of a March primary against Menefee, but neither candidate secured a majority of the vote, triggering next Tuesday's runoff.