Crypto PAC Launches $30M Blitz Against Sherrod Brown Following CLARITY Act Setback

The crypto-focused super PAC Fairshake has kicked off a $30 million advertising effort targeting former Ohio Senator Sherrod Brown, a Democrat. The move comes just a week after the Senate declined to advance the CLARITY Act.

Brown, who lost his Senate seat in 2024, is now vying to win it back. Fairshake indicated that additional spending in both House and Senate races is on the way, which will include backing candidates from both major parties.

Fairshake Trains Its Sights on a Familiar Foe

On September 15, the Senate failed to advance the Digital Asset Market CLARITY Act in a procedural vote that ended 49-50, far short of the 60-vote threshold required to proceed. The defeat marked a major blow for the digital asset industry, and Fairshake—a super PAC bankrolled by crypto interests—is now channeling its resources against Democratic candidates ahead of the midterms.

This is what oligarchy and political corruption is all about.

Crypto billionaires are now spending $30 million to defeat Sherrod Brown in Ohio — only days after Senate Democrats blocked their CLARITY Act.

We cannot allow billionaires to buy elections.

Fight back!

— Bernie Sanders (@BernieSanders) September 21, 2026

The Ohio effort against Brown is one such move. The former senator has attracted industry money before, having served as the top Democrat on the Senate Banking Committee. In 2024, Fairshake spent $41 million on advertising targeting him, and he lost that November. Republicans have since cited crypto spending as a key factor in that outcome.

Polymarket Bets Favor Democrats in November

Fairshake begins the campaign on Tuesday with ads and direct mail aimed at Brown. The New York Times has called this the industry's most aggressive push of the midterms so far. Brown is running against Republican Senator Jon Husted in Ohio, a race considered one of the top contests for control of Congress.

Federal filings show the super PAC and two allied groups hold a combined $120.4 million war chest. Fairshake has also poured over $68 million into congressional primaries this cycle, according to the Times. While the group calls itself bipartisan and supported some Democrats in 2024, its general election spending this year is expected to tilt heavily toward Republicans.

The influx comes as prediction markets shift against the GOP nationally. On Polymarket, traders give Democrats a 93% chance of winning the House and a 65% shot at the Senate, with Republicans at 7% and 36%, respectively. Ohio mirrors that trend: Polymarket's US market prices Brown at 61% versus Husted's 40%, while the global book is closer at 55% to 46%.

Polling has shifted as well, with Trump's approval rating sliding to a record low of 32% in a Reuters/Ipsos survey. Ohio will test whether $30 million can still tilt the outcome the industry wants.