Stand With Crypto, the advocacy group launched by Coinbase in 2023, announced a bipartisan slate of Senate and House endorsements on Wednesday. This move intensifies its electoral strategy approximately one month before November midterms and two weeks after the Clarity Act collapsed in the Senate. The organization’s first Senate endorsements cover three specific races: Republican Sen. Jon Husted in Ohio, who faces former Senate Banking Committee Chair Sherrod Brown; Republican Rep. Ashley Hinson running for a Senate seat in Iowa; and Democratic Rep. Chris Pappas running in New Hampshire against former GOP Sen. John Sununu. The group stated it selects candidates based on their crypto policy positions regardless of party affiliation.
On the House side, endorsements include Iowa Republican Mariannette Miller-Meeks and Alabama Democrat Shomari Figures. Stand With Crypto plans to ramp up advertising in six House campaigns, building on an August endorsement of 32 House incumbents described as proven digital asset policy champions. The timing follows the Senate’s 49-50 vote to fail advancing the Clarity Act last month, with Democrats voting as a bloc amid concerns over President Donald Trump's crypto dealings. Executive Director Mason Lynaugh noted that the group's more than three million advocates are now fully focused on electing pro-crypto candidates. Unlike super PACs, Stand With Crypto does not make direct campaign contributions but focuses on voter mobilization and grading candidates through its Voter Hub.
The strategic pivot from legislative lobbying to direct electoral intervention signals a fundamental change in how the crypto industry engages with Washington. By endorsing specific Senate candidates immediately following the Clarity Act's failure, Stand With Crypto is attempting to convert legislative frustration into political capital. The endorsement of Jon Husted in Ohio is particularly significant, as it targets Sherrod Brown, a known skeptic whose potential return would influence the Senate Banking Committee. This indicates that the industry views control of committee chairs as critical to future regulatory outcomes, prioritizing institutional leverage over broad partisan alignment.
Market structure implications arise from the distinction between Stand With Crypto’s grassroots mobilization and the financial firepower of aligned super PACs like Fairshake. While Stand With Crypto avoids direct contributions, its endorsements serve as a signal to industry-aligned funding sources, effectively coordinating political spending without violating contribution laws. With combined crypto-aligned political spending approaching roughly $200 million for the 2026 cycle, this coordinated effort suggests a matured political infrastructure capable of sustaining long-term pressure on lawmakers. Observers should watch whether these endorsements translate into actual vote shifts in key states, which will determine if the industry can successfully bypass stalled legislative frameworks through electoral means.
