Crypto PAC to spend $30M opposing Sherrod Brown in Ohio, again

Fairshake, a political action committee that the New York Times and Cointelegraph say is funded largely by cryptocurrency companies Coinbase and Ripple Labs, confirmed plans to spend $30 million to oppose Democrat Sherrod Brown’s 2026 Senate bid in Ohio. A Fairshake spokesperson, Geoff Vetter, told Cointelegraph the PAC initially planned the $30 million expenditure and expected to announce further spending before the Nov. 3 midterm elections.

The move follows Fairshake’s involvement in the 2024 Ohio Senate contest, where the PAC spent roughly $41 million backing Republican Bernie Moreno and opposing Brown. Brown, who previously chaired the Senate Banking Committee when Democrats controlled the chamber, was defeated by Moreno by about four percentage points in 2024. That outcome occurred amid more than $300 million in spending by Fairshake and other outside groups in the race.

Vetter declined to discuss Fairshake’s tactical approach for the upcoming midterms, but previously said in August the PAC had about $122 million available in its war chest ahead of the 2024 election. Cointelegraph contacted Brown’s campaign for comment and did not receive an immediate response.

Analysts and political actors have noted that multiple crypto-aligned groups are engaging in key races as control of the House and Senate are contested in 2026. Cointelegraph also noted that, as of Monday, some prediction-market contracts on platforms such as Kalshi priced Democrats with odds of retaking majorities in one or both chambers, reflecting market participants’ views on broader electoral dynamics.