Ripple: Crypto Mission Unchanged as Democrats Sweep Congress

Crypto's political machine took a split decision on election night. Democrats won back the House and the Senate on November 3, handing them the legislative agenda for President Donald Trump's final two years in office. But Fairshake, the industry's largest super PAC, still won 29 of the 34 races decided as of November 4, according to Reuters.

The wins crossed party lines. Republican Senator Pete Ricketts held off independent Dan Osborn in Nebraska after heavy crypto spending, and Republican Andy Barr claimed a Kentucky Senate seat with industry backing in his primary. Fairshake's House effort had originally targeted 32 incumbents — 19 Republicans and 13 Democrats who voted for the CLARITY Act — and several Fairshake-backed Democrats also punched their tickets to Congress.

The losses stung. Representatives Bryan Steil and Bill Huizenga both lost their reelection bids, and Financial Services Committee Chairman French Hill was on the target list. The biggest miss came in Ohio, where Democrat Sherrod Brown beat Republican Senator Jon Husted even after crypto-backed committees poured in more than $60 million. Brown, a longtime crypto critic, lost his own Senate seat in 2024 in another expensive race involving industry money.

Industry-linked groups spent roughly $176 million across more than 100 congressional races by late October, according to crypto.news, with Fairshake and its affiliates covering most of it. The PAC counts Ripple, Coinbase and venture firm Andreessen Horowitz among its backers.

Ripple isn't blinking. CEO Brad Garlinghouse posted on X that pro-crypto lawmakers won on both sides of the aisle, writing, 'New Congress, with the same mission: clear rules, built in America,' and noting that the roughly 67 million Americans using crypto 'aren't going anywhere.' Chief Legal Officer Stuart Alderoty conceded some will read the night as a setback, but argued the industry's results should be judged separately from how either party fared, citing Stand With Crypto data showing crypto-friendly lawmakers winning across party lines.

The prize remains the CLARITY Act, which would set federal rules for crypto markets and sort out the roles of the SEC and the CFTC. It stalled in September when a Senate motion to open debate failed 49 to 50, and any revival will run through lawmakers worried about consumer protection, financial oversight and the industry's political muscle. Alderoty said Ripple will keep working both parties through super PACs, advocacy groups and education pushes with nonprofits like the National Cryptocurrency Association. Fairshake, sitting on about $56 million, says it's already eyeing 2028.