Fairshake, the campaign finance arm of the crypto industry, has begun rolling out its campaign strategies as part of its well-funded effort to pack Congress with lawmakers willing to pass pro-digital asset policy, and Democratic Rep. Al Green is the first lawmaker on its blacklist.
An affiliate of the Fairshake political action committee, which has begun deploying its $193 million war chest for this year’s midterm congressional elections, said it will spend $1.5 million on ads opposing Green’s primary campaign.
The critical Texas lawmaker has often highlighted the potential dangers posed by cryptocurrencies to the U.S. financial system and investors, co-sponsored a bill to bar President Donald Trump from his personal cryptocurrency interests, and voted against cryptocurrency policy legislation. This opposition earned it an “F” rating from Stand With Crypto, a group that rates politicians’ support for crypto.
Green, who is among the highest-ranking Democrats on the House Financial Services Committee that is directly involved in crypto legislation, faces rivals in the Democratic primary for the recently redrawn Texas district he represents. The Texas primary will come quickly next month, and Green, a longtime congressman, will have to beat a young Democrat, Christian Menefee, who just won a special election and took the seat in the redrawn district a few days ago.
“Texas voters can no longer stand idly by and have representation in Congress that is actively hostile to a growing Texas crypto community,” Protect Progress, an affiliate of Fairshake’s super PAC, said in a statement. “We are committed to electing new members who support innovation, growth and wealth creation for all Americans.”
Menefee supports blockchain technology, according to his campaign position, and Stand With Crypto gives him an “A” rating.
In Green’s last election in 2024, his campaign spent less than $450,000 to hold on to his seat, which went uncontested in the primary, and he needed even less in 2022. But he has raised more than $700,000 so far in this tougher election. Still, that’s less than half of Fairshake’s spending against him.
Fairshake also announced this week that it would spend $5 million to support a pro-crypto Republican from Alabama, U.S. Rep. Barry Moore, in that state’s Senate primary. And the group also supports House Financial Services Committee Chairman French Hill, according to a spokesperson. The super PAC typically spends money on ads that are general political messages, not related to crypto issues, and because these are “independent expenditures” under election law, Fairshake is not allowed to coordinate with campaigns.
