The primary result in Michigan’s 13th District landed as Fairshake-linked groups keep spending heavily in 2026 races ahead of the November general election.
Michigan State Representative Donavan McKinney defeated incumbent House Representative Shri Thanedar in the Democratic primary for Michigan’s 13th Congressional District, winning 51.9% of the vote to Thanedar’s 48.1% as of Wednesday, the New York Times reported. The race drew scrutiny because a cryptocurrency-backed political action committee, or PAC (group that spends on elections), spent more than $2 million on media backing Thanedar, who had supported several crypto-friendly bills in Congress. McKinney, widely seen as the more progressive candidate, said during the campaign that the industry was "paying my opponent back for helping Trump make over $1 billion since taking office," an apparent reference to Thanedar’s voting record. Protect Progress, the super PAC tied to those ads, is affiliated with Fairshake, a crypto-backed political group supported mainly by Coinbase and Ripple. After spending more than $170 million in the 2024 U.S. election cycle, Fairshake and its affiliates have continued putting millions into this year’s primaries in multiple states. Thanedar had voted for measures including the GENIUS Act and CLARITY Act, and he also reportedly lost more than $600,000 in the second quarter of 2026 after investing $3.7 million in campaign funds into crypto companies. McKinney, who has received backing following his victory from the Democratic National Committee and the Democratic Socialists of America, will face Republican Taras Nykoriak in November. In Washington’s 4th Congressional District, another Fairshake affiliate, Defend American Jobs, spent more than $65,000 supporting Republican Amanda McKinney, who advanced to the general election against Democrat John Duresky after both won more than 30% in Tuesday’s primary.