Arkansas — 2nd District

WASHINGTON — A political fundraising group with ties to the cryptocurrency industry plans to spend $1 million to bolster Republican Rep. French Hill’s reelection bid for Arkansas’ 2nd Congressional District.

Fairshake and two affiliated super PACs, Defend American Jobs and Protect Progress, announced Monday that they are supporting 32 congressional candidates — 19 Republicans and 13 Democrats — in hopes of securing industry-friendly representation in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Defend American Jobs has used its resources to support Republican candidates. Protect Progress has backed Democrats.

The network’s backers include cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase, digital finance company Ripple and the founders of Andreessen Horowitz, a Silicon Valley-based venture capital firm.

Fairshake will spend $1 million each on the Hill campaign and five others. Hill and three other lawmakers — Michigan Republican Bill Huizenga, Wisconsin Republican Bryan Steil and Oregon Democrat Janelle Bynum — serve on the House Financial Services Committee, which has legislative jurisdiction over the financial system and monetary policy.

Hill is the committee’s chairman and has pushed legislation to modernize regulations for cryptocurrencies and other digital assets. He has represented Arkansas’ 2nd District since January 2015.

Hill is facing Democratic candidate Chris Jones in the Nov. 3 general election.

Fairshake spokesperson Geoff Vetter did not provide a breakdown of spending for the other 26 congressional races. According to Federal Election Commission records, Fairshake, Defend American Jobs and Protect Progress entered September with a combined $120.4 million cash on hand.

“Fairshake has always been and always will be an issue-focused organization,” Vetter said in a statement. “We back pro-crypto candidates who support American innovation in both parties. We’ve won 53 of the 57 races we engaged in this cycle and look forward to continuing to build on the largest pro-crypto caucus in American history.”

Fairshake and its network backed Hill during the Republican primary in March. Defend American Jobs spent $418,057.55 on media and direct mail services supporting Hill against challenger Chase McDowell.

Hill is the lead sponsor of the CLARITY Act, a bill that would instruct federal agencies on how to regulate digital commodity transactions and brokers.

Another bill, the GENIUS Act, became law last year. It establishes a market structure for payment stablecoins, which are cryptocurrencies with values attached to stable assets like the U.S. dollar.

With limited time in this year’s congressional calendar, the CLARITY Act’s fate is uncertain. The Senate failed to advance its own version of the legislation before senators began their October recess.

“I do believe that there is a path for CLARITY to be completed before the end of this Congress,” Hill told the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette in a September interview previewing the midterm elections.

“There’s been tremendous progress and work made by the senators,” he continued. “Of course, I wish they’d taken my advice last June and had the GENIUS Act and CLARITY linked together and passed together last year, but that didn’t come to pass.”

The Hill campaign did not respond to a Democrat-Gazette inquiry regarding Monday’s announcement.

The spending news followed the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee’s decision to place the 2nd District in its “Red to Blue” program. The designation allows Jones, the Democratic challenger, to access additional organizational and fundraising resources.

DCCC Chair Suzan DelBene said Jones understands the most pressing issues facing Arkansans, such as affordability. She added Democrats believe Jones can flip the seat.

“We’re in a strong environment, and people are tired of the broken promises they’ve seen and costs skyrocketing,” she said. “We have a great candidate running strong, and it’s a great opportunity for Chris to win.”