Crypto super PAC plans $30M to oppose Sherrod Brown in Ohio

The cryptocurrency super PAC Fairshake plans to spend $30 million in Ohio opposing former Sen. Sherrod Brown's bid to return to the Senate. Brown represented Ohio for nearly two decades before being defeated in 2024. He is now challenging incumbent Sen. Jon Husted in a tight midterm race that could be crucial to determining partisan control of the Senate. The crypto industry spent about $40 million against Brown two years ago and helped elect Sen. Bernie Moreno, a crypto enthusiast. Brown previously chaired the Senate Banking Committee and had taken a more skeptical approach toward digital assets. Fairshake reported $108 million on hand at the end of August, with six weeks remaining until the midterms. The super PAC's latest spending follows the failure of the Clarity Act, a major crypto regulation bill and a long-standing industry priority, to clear a procedural hurdle in the Senate last week. Every Democrat and several Republicans blocked the measure. Many people in the industry and Congress suggested the legislation was dead after the failed vote. Supporters had hoped to pass the bill before the midterms, which could change control of one or both chambers and reduce incentives to pass the current measure.