Crypto’s next Washington test runs through the November election

Two crypto-backed political groups have announced $33 million in spending targeting former Senator Sherrod Brown, yet the industry’s next Washington challenge reaches far beyond one race. With the November 3, 2026, midterm election a month away, control of Congress will help determine the path for crypto taxes, oversight of regulators and another possible attempt at industry legislation, according to CoinDesk (direct).

Fairshake, a political action committee backed by several crypto companies, announced $30 million in expenditures targeting Brown. The Digital Freedom Fund, financed mainly by Gemini founders Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, announced another $3 million. But there is no further spending announcement from Fairshake for now. The group told CoinDesk on Wednesday that it had nothing more to announce, while the report noted that last-minute advertising purchases may become more expensive as election day approaches.

A new Congress, an unfinished rulebook

Lawmakers have left Washington for their final recess before the election. They leave behind an industry still weighing the consequences of the Clarity Act’s collapse in September. That bill was intended, in part, to define how federal agencies could deal with crypto. Its failure has shifted much of the industry’s attention toward what regulators will do next, but it has not removed Congress from the picture.

As of Friday, October 2, polling compiled by 270toWin pointed toward Democrats taking control of the House of Representatives, with the Senate outcome less clear. Traders on prediction markets—platforms where people bet on outcomes—were more decisive. At 5 p.m. Eastern time that Friday, both Kalshi and Polymarket indicated expectations that Democrats would win control of both chambers, CoinDesk reported. Neither the polling nor those market positions settle the result.

The stakes extend beyond which party gets to advance bills. Congress oversees the agencies writing financial rules and must approve their budgets next year. The Securities and Exchange Commission, Commodity Futures Trading Commission, Office of the Comptroller of the Currency and Treasury Department are among the bodies expected to work on rulemaking over the coming year. The next congressional majority will therefore matter even if no replacement for the Clarity Act advances.

Tax proposals move into focus

A fresh bill on crypto market structure—the framework governing how the market operates—remains possible, although its prospects are uncertain. Tax legislation has a firmer place on the agenda, according to CoinDesk. The House Ways and Means Committee passed a crypto tax bill in September with broad support from both parties. Senator Steve Daines introduced a separate crypto tax bill in the Senate the following week.

CoinDesk’s assessment: the next Congress will shape regulatory oversight, the prospects for further crypto laws and the industry’s relationships with the parties in power.

For crypto companies, the election is consequently both a legislative test and a relationship test. Their dealings with majority-party lawmakers will depend on who wins. Hearings are also likely next year, adding another setting in which Congress can examine the industry as agencies develop their rules.

The next signals to watch are the November 3 results, any further political spending announcements and the route lawmakers choose for the tax proposals. A new market-structure effort is another possibility, but its direction remains unresolved. For now, the industry faces an election that will decide who oversees the regulators it is already watching.