PAC funded by Ripple and Coinbase spent $2,000,000 on Florida elections, barely mentioning crypto assets
A political action committee (PAC) called Protect Progress, which is affiliated with the Fairshake organization primarily funded by Coinbase and Ripple Labs, has spent over $2 million on advertising opposing a Democratic candidate in Florida's 24th congressional district. The ads target Oliver Gilbert, a Democratic primary candidate who had not taken a notable stance on digital assets before the campaign. Gilbert's opponent, Florida state Senator Shevrin Jones, has received a "strongly supports" rating from the crypto-advocacy group Stand With Crypto. The incumbent, Representative Frederica Wilson, who has voted against crypto-related bills in Congress, has endorsed Gilbert. In response to the ads, Gilbert criticized "tech billionaires... friends of [Donald] Trump" for backing "crypto grifters trying to buy the Democratic primary."
Separately, the Protect Progress PAC spent over $150,000 supporting Representative Lois Frankel's re-election in Florida's 23rd district. An affiliated PAC, Defend American Jobs, reported spending a total of $1.5 million on ads supporting Republican candidates in Alaska, Florida, and Wyoming. These expenditures are part of a broader strategy by Fairshake, which reported a $193 million war chest earlier this year, to influence the 2026 midterm elections by supporting both Democratic and Republican candidates. To date, Fairshake's affiliated PACs have directed over $82 million into primary and special elections. The outcome of these primaries will help determine which party controls the House and Senate in the next Congress.
cryptonews.ru08/18 22:29
