A conservative US political action committee backed by the Solana Policy Institute (the Sentinel Action Fund) has committed to massive advertising spending on the political opponent of former Senator Sherrod Brown, a Democrat and prominent crypto-skeptic who is trying to return to Washington in this year’s Ohio Senate election.
Sentinel and its affiliated nonprofit, Right Vote, pledged $8 million to Jon Husted, the Republican nominee to fill Vice President JD Vance’s seat, according to a statement Wednesday. The committee accused his opponent, Brown, who had been chairman of the Senate Banking Committee before losing his seat in 2024, of having “interfered in pro-innovation policies as they relate to digital assets.”
The super PAC is partially funded by the Solana Institute and crypto venture firm Multicoin Capital, as well as several high-profile financial figures such as Blackstone CEO Stephen Schwarzman, Ken Fisher of Fisher Investments, AQR Capital Management co-founder Cliff Asness, and Paul Singer, the billionaire co-CEO of hedge fund Elliott Management, who has a stake in Michael Saylor’s bitcoin giant Strategy.
However, the PAC’s largest donor is a nonprofit, Townsend Six Corp., which was established in late 2024 and is backed by an $8 million contribution from an unnamed donor.
The Ohio elections will be among the closest Senate battles that will decide that chamber’s majority next year. While targeting open seats had been difficult for Democrats, the decline in Republican popularity during President Donald Trump’s administration has given Democrats a chance to regain that majority.
While polls last year indicated Husted had a strong lead over Brown, more recent polls have shown the race to be very close.
Sentinel joins leading crypto industry PAC Fairshake and newly emerged Fellowship PAC this month as entities supporting pro-digital asset candidates. By the time Brown was defeated in the 2024 election, Fairshake had dedicated $40 million to his opponent.
The Solana Policy Institute donated a total of $750,000 to the Sentinel Action Fund. The group, however, has divided its party loyalties in its campaign spending. He gave $2 million to congressional Republican PACs and $1.5 million to Democratic PACs with opposing goals, according to Federal Election Commission records.
If Democrats win the Senate, the House or both, it could change the course of cryptocurrency legislation, although the industry has built up significant bipartisan support in Congress and is likely to add more names in November’s midterm elections.
