Fairshake targets Sherrod Brown with $30M ad campaign in 2026 Ohio Senate race
The crypto-backed super PAC is reopening its Ohio playbook with a massive spending blitz, this time over the CLARITY Act vote
Fairshake, the crypto industry’s most formidable political weapon, is dropping $30 million on an advertising and mail campaign against Sherrod Brown in Ohio. The blitz kicked off on September 22 and represents one of the largest single-race expenditures by a crypto-aligned super PAC in the current cycle.
The trigger: Senate Democrats recently voted unanimously against the CLARITY Act, a bill designed to establish clearer regulatory guardrails for the cryptocurrency sector.
A familiar target, a familiar strategy
This isn’t Fairshake’s first time going after Brown. During the 2024 election cycle, the super PAC spent $41 million trying to unseat the longtime Ohio Democrat. That effort succeeded, at least in part. Brown lost his Senate seat to Republican Bernie Moreno in what became one of the most expensive races of that cycle.
Now Brown is back, running for Senate again. Brown’s current opponent is Republican Sen. Jon Husted, who already holds a significant fundraising advantage in the race. Adding $30 million in outside spending on top of that gap makes Brown’s path considerably steeper.
The war chest behind the campaign
Fairshake and its affiliated organizations reported a combined $120.4 million in available funds as of September 20, according to federal filings. The super PAC is backed by leading cryptocurrency firms including Coinbase and Ripple, as well as venture capitalists such as Andreessen Horowitz.
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Fairshake has also signaled plans to expand its spending into additional House and Senate races beyond Ohio. The group has historically supported candidates from both parties, provided those candidates align with crypto-friendly policy positions.
Brown’s shifting stance and the Ohio landscape
Brown has reportedly moderated his public views on cryptocurrency since his 2024 defeat. However, it hasn’t been enough to keep Fairshake from making him the primary target of its latest offensive.
The CLARITY Act vote gave the super PAC a clean narrative: Brown and his Democratic colleagues had a chance to support regulatory clarity for the crypto industry and chose not to.