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Cryptocurrency billionaire Sam Bankman-Fried’s money is backing Democrats across the country who are facing competitive primary races. Nowhere has his political action committee spent more than in Oregon’s 6th Congressional District, where Bankman-Fried is backing political novice Carrick Flynn (“Bitcoin Republic,” WW, May 4). Elsewhere in the country, the PAC picked an incumbent and, in all cases other than Flynn, candidates with legislative track records.
Perhaps most notably for Oregon voters, Bankman-Fried donated $2 million to a cryptocurrency-backed PAC, which in turn is spending in another Oregon primary through an affiliated PAC. Oregon Labor Commissioner Val Hoyle is the presumed front-runner in the 4th Congressional District and is getting a boost from more than a half-million dollars in independent expenditures from Web3 Forward. Hoyle hasn’t gone on the record about cryptocurrency regulations but is considered a moderate Democrat.
“When our media consultant who tracks TV notified us that the group Web3 Forward had placed a TV buy, we were trying to figure out who it was supporting,” say Hoyle campaign manager Logan Gilles. “We saw the ad the same time everybody else did.”
WW looked through Federal Election Commission records to see who else is backed by Bankman-Fried. He has contributed $15 million to two super PACS, $13 million of which went to Protect Our Future. He donated another $24,000 directly to candidates and other PACS, FEC records show.
Where Protect Our Future PAC is spending money:
$10,277,511
Oregon 6th District
Status: Open seat
Candidate: Carrick Flynn
$1,919,430
Georgia 7th District
Status: Two incumbent congresswomen redistricted into a competitive primary
Candidate: U.S. Rep. Lucy McBath
$1,010,178
Ohio 11th District
Status: U.S. Rep. Shontel Brown, the incumbent, faced a high-profile challenge from a Bernie Sanders backer, making for a rematch of a primary from last year.
Candidate: Brown won with aid from this and other super PACs.
$1,057,382
Texas 30th District
Status: Open seat, retiring congresswoman
Candidate: Jasmine Crockett, a state representative who has the backing of the retiring incumbent, as well as U.S. Sens. Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren. She came in first in the primary but faces a runoff.
$982,063
North Carolina 4th District
Status: Open seat, retiring congressman
Candidate: Valerie Foushee, a state senator. She was called the “favorite of the party establishment” by the Raleigh News & Observer, but it is a competitive primary.
$971,553
Kentucky 3rd District
Status: Open seat, retiring congressman
Candidate: Morgan McGarvey, minority leader in the state senate and the fundraising leader in his race.
Bankman-Fried contributed $2 million (of the $6 million) that the cryptocurrency-backed super PAC GMI has reported raising in the past six months. The PAC is explicitly seeking to promote policies favorable to cryptocurrency, spending $10 million this primary election season—”crypto community’s campaign arm,” a backer called it in January. It transferred $2 million to affiliated super PAC Web3 Forward.
Where Web3 Forward is spending money:
$504,208
Oregon 4th District
Status: Open seat, U.S. Rep. Peter DeFazio retiring
Candidate: Val Hoyle, who serves as Oregon labor commissioner, is considered the front-runner.
$212,787
Pennsylvania, U.S. Senate
Status: Open seat, retiring senator
Candidate: Lt. Gov. John Fetterman, a progressive, is considered the front-runner.
$1,324,740
Candidate backed by Protect Our Future and Web3 Forward
Texas 30th District
Status: Open seat, retiring congresswoman
Candidate: Jasmine Crockett