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Key Takeaways
- Stand With Crypto’s list of 32 backed House incumbents spans both parties, including committee leaders central to pending digital asset legislation
- The group functions as a voter-outreach and rating organization without making direct campaign contributions, unlike the affiliated Fairshake super PAC
- Fairshake has $122 million on hand for the fall campaign and has already backed 49 winning candidates during the primary season
Stand With Crypto, a political advocacy group founded by Coinbase, named 32 U.S. House incumbents it is supporting in this year’s midterm elections. The list spans both parties and includes several lawmakers who chair or lead committees central to pending digital asset legislation.
Group Draws on Millions of Online Members to Back Bipartisan List
Stand With Crypto has grown to more than 3 million online U.S. members since its founding. The group rates political candidates on their support for crypto policy and directs its membership toward candidates it considers favorable to the industry.
The newly announced list includes House Majority Whip Tom Emmer, House Agriculture Committee Chairman Glenn Thompson and Bryan Steil, who leads the digital assets subcommittee within the House Financial Services Committee. All three are Republicans who have played central roles in the chamber’s recent crypto legislative push.
The group’s backing is not limited to the current majority party. Stand With Crypto also named Democratic Rep. Jim Costa, who holds a senior position on the House Agriculture Committee’s minority side and could be positioned for the panel’s chairmanship if Democrats win control of the House in November.
Endorsements Target Committees Likely to Shape Crypto Legislation
Several lawmakers on the list sit on committees expected to handle crypto-related bills in the next Congress, including the Ways and Means Committee and the panels overseeing financial services and agriculture policy.
The list also recognizes lawmakers who have directly authored or co-sponsored crypto legislation this year. Nevada Democrat Steven Horsford introduced the bipartisan Digital Asset Protection, Accountability, Regulation, Innovation, Taxation, and Yields Act, known as the PARITY Act.
Michigan Republican Bill Huizenga co-sponsored both the Blockchain Regulatory Certainty Act and the House’s Digital Asset Market Clarity Act.
Ohio Republican Warren Davidson introduced the Bitcoin for America Act last year, while New York Democrat Ritchie Torres reintroduced the Blockchain Regulatory Certainty Act alongside Emmer.
Stand With Crypto said it plans to announce endorsements for Senate races and non-incumbent candidates closer to the general election.
Group Frames Crypto Voters as a Political Bloc Both Parties Should Court
Mason Lynaugh, executive director of Stand With Crypto, said in a statement that the midterms arrive at a pivotal moment for crypto policy in Washington.
“The midterms come at a key inflection point for crypto policy in Washington, D.C.”
Lynaugh said candidates in both parties risk overlooking a voting bloc that stands to grow in influence as they compete for support outside traditional constituencies.
The group’s endorsements are not accompanied by direct campaign contributions, since Stand With Crypto functions primarily as a voter-outreach and rating organization rather than a political action committee.
Financial Backing Flows Through Separate Industry PACs
Candidates who receive Stand With Crypto’s highest ratings frequently also draw financial support from the crypto industry’s political action committees, most notably the Fairshake super PAC and its affiliated groups. Those PACs, unlike Stand With Crypto itself, can make direct expenditures on campaign advertising.
Fairshake spokesman Geoff Vetter said the PAC has $122 million on hand heading into the fall campaign season. The group’s primary-season spending has already supported advertising for 49 winning candidates, according to Vetter.
“We’re not slowing down heading into November.”
The distinction between Stand With Crypto’s endorsements and Fairshake’s financial spending reflects a broader structure within crypto’s political apparatus, in which advocacy and voter-rating groups operate separately from the PACs that fund campaign advertising directly.
