Crypto-aligned political action committees have spent more than $52 million opposing Sherrod Brown's return to the US Senate, according to Federal Election Commission filings submitted Thursday. The total marks an escalation of more than 50% over the spending the industry initially announced for the Ohio race.

The Fairshake affiliate Defend American Jobs, a group backing Republican candidates, reported $46.6 million in media purchases opposing Brown and supporting Republican incumbent Jon Husted. Fairshake said in September it planned to spend $30 million against Brown — meaning disclosed outlays have already exceeded that figure by more than $16 million.

Fairshake draws its funding largely from Coinbase and Ripple Labs. Its Ohio outlays surpass the $41 million the PAC spent in 2024, when it backed Republican Bernie Moreno against Brown, then running for reelection as chair of the Senate Banking Committee. Brown lost that race after building a record as one of Congress's most vocal critics of policies favored by the crypto industry.

Brown responded to the ad campaign in an interview aired Friday on Pod Save America. "I've spent my career taking on Wall Street, taking on big pharma, taking on big oil and been successful in many cases," he said.

He added: "Jon Husted is their boy [...] They know he's their guy, they know I'm going to hold him accountable and I guess it's a perfect storm, so they spend literally tens and tens of millions of dollars."

Who else is spending in Ohio?

Fairshake's affiliate is not the only crypto group ramping up as Ohioans vote. Early voting has run for 10 days, with just under three weeks until Election Day.

• The Digital Freedom Fund, a Super PAC created by Gemini co-founders Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss, reported roughly $3 million in ad spending this week against Brown and for Husted.
• That brings the group's total media purchases in the Ohio race above $5.9 million.
• Defend American Jobs also reported more than $6.7 million against Independent candidate Dan Osborn in Nebraska's Senate race. Osborn challenges Republican Pete Ricketts, who voted for both the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act and the Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for US Stablecoins Act.

Cointelegraph contacted Fairshake and Husted's campaign for comment and received no immediate response.

How could the 2026 elections shape US crypto policy?

Fairshake has stated openly that it intends to "back pro-crypto candidates" in 2026, aiming to fill the next Congress with lawmakers supportive of industry-favored policy. The PAC reported $193 million in cash on hand in January, ahead of the midterms.

Other crypto-aligned groups have joined the effort. The Fellowship committee, backed by Cantor Fitzgerald and Anchorage Digital, reported more than $11 million in spending between August 2025 and August 2026, largely on media supporting House and Senate candidates.

The Ohio race now functions as the industry's single most expensive Senate test to date, outstripping its own 2024 benchmark by more than $5 million. Final FEC disclosures land after Election Day, when the actual size of the crypto sector's 2026 political investment becomes clear.

By Tom Whitfield