Crypto-PAC Supports Democratic Candidates, Donating Over $9M

A political action committee (PAC) set up in January called Protect Our Future has spent more than $9 million to support candidates running for seats in the U.S. House of Representatives. One of the backers includes FTX’s CEO, Sam Bankman-Fried.

The U.S. Federal Election Commission reported expenditures that show that, as of April 14, Protect Our Future has used $9,024,317. This capital was used to support the campaigns of Lucia McBath, Carrick Flynn, Shontel Brown, and Jasmine Crockett to represent different districts in Georgia, Oregon, Ohio, and Texas, respectively.

Brown and McBath currently hold office, while Crockett currently represents Texas’ 100th District in the state’s House of Representatives.

Over $5 million was used by Protect Our Future for ads across different platforms for Flynn –  a political newcomer who until recently had lived outside of the United States for several years. Approximately $2 million in ad buys and production was contributed to McBath, while Crockett and Brown each received $1 million.

One of the candidates, Flynn, has rarely spoken publicly on cryptocurrencies, and his campaign website does not suggest that his campaign is open to accepting donations in cryptocurrencies. On the other hand, Cody Reynolds listed “threatening laws and legislation” on cryptocurrencies and Web3 as one of his key campaign issues.

The crypto-based PAC has been criticized by some as members of the public and other political candidates feel that the PAC now brings an auction element into the United States’ democracy. One Twitter user, Cenk Uygur, tweeted that “crypto guys are now buying politicians across the US.”