Key Takeaways
A crypto-affiliated super PAC has spent more than $4.2 million to influence the Democratic primary in Georgia's 13th Congressional district, highlighting a massive push by industry groups to shape the 2026 elections.
"They know that a Republican voter doesn’t want to hear from a super PAC that supports Democratic candidates. They are dividing this money up to try to present their message as persuasively as possible to their target audiences," Shanna Ports, senior legal counsel at the Campaign Legal Center, said in a recent interview.
The group, Protect Progress, has directed the funds to support state representative Jasmine Clark. Federal Election Commission data shows the spending is part of a broader strategy by its affiliate, Fairshake, which has also poured more than $2.8 million into a Texas runoff to oppose Representative Al Green. Fairshake, which is backed by crypto firms including Coinbase and Ripple Labs, uses a Republican-focused arm called Defend American Jobs to influence GOP primaries.
This spending blitz tests the crypto industry's ability to elect favorable candidates and fend off tougher regulation, with key races in Georgia, Texas, and California serving as the main battlegrounds. The outcome of these contests could determine the future of digital asset legislation in the US.
The strategy of using party-specific affiliates is a new evolution in campaign finance, differing from the "pop-up" super PACs recently used by other lobbying groups. Pro-Israel lobby AIPAC has been linked to several newly-formed PACs that emerge just before an election to obscure their funding sources until after votes are cast, a tactic seen in recent Illinois and Michigan primaries.
The crypto and artificial intelligence industries have adopted the affiliate model. Fairshake’s structure allows donors to contribute specifically to Democratic or Republican causes. For example, Democratic megadonor Ron Conway has given to Protect Progress, while the venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz has funded the parent PAC. A similar model is used by the AI-focused super PAC Leading the Future, which operates the Democratic-aligned Think Big and Republican-aligned American Mission.
While some candidates welcome the support, others are actively campaigning against the influence of these outside groups. In California, a separate crypto-backed PAC named Grow California has spent more than $500,000 on negative ads targeting progressive Democrat Jackie Elward and over $952,000 against John Erickson in a state Senate race.
Both candidates have publicly denounced the spending. "When crypto billionaires and people who hate labor are against you — well, you know what they say, ‘Show me your enemies, and I’ll show you where you stand,’" Erickson said.
The high-profile spending can also create a dilemma for the candidates it aims to help. In Georgia, Jasmine Clark appeared to delete a social media post from March that praised digital assets as "the future," suggesting a potential desire to distance herself from her new, high-spending backers.
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice.
