Crypto’s $135 Million Campaign Is Undefeated in 48 Races So Far

   “You need to be there campaign after campaign, cycle after cycle. You need to keep showing up,” Loge said. “It’s not write a check, get a bill.” Still, crypto is taking a victory lap, even for races that weren’t particularly competitive. Protect Progress spent $1 million to back Michigan Democratic incumbent Representative Shri Thanedar, who won with more than 68% of the vote reported so far. Defend American Jobs spent $3 million in support of Republican Jim Justice’s Senate campaign in deep-red West Virginia. And its playbook could inspire other industries to mimic a strategy that flexes deep pockets and downplays actual corporate interests, said Claypool, calling it an “intimidation tool,” that seeks to “discipline” candidates and lawmakers to fall in line. “They’ve gone out of their way to avoid being ideological in terms of explaining what the mission of their super PACs is,” he said. “This is a huge ‘corporate money in politics’ problem that the crypto sector is exploiting in ways we haven’t seen before.” Some signs suggest it’s working. In the Nevada Senate race, the Republican candidate, Sam Brown, added cryptocurrency and blockchain innovation to his list of campaign priorities in late February, after Fairshake and its affiliates spent more than $14 million on advertising in other races ahead of Super Tuesday. His Democratic opponent, Jacky Rosen, also nods to the industry on her campaign page. Votes in that race are still being counted. Neither Fairshake nor its affiliates supported either candidate — this time.