Solana Policy Institute-backed PAC spends millions to jam Sherrod Brown's Senate run

A conservative U.S. political action committee backed by the Solana Policy Institute — the Sentinel Action Fund — has committed to a massive advertising spend 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, committed $8 million to Jon Husted, the Republican named to fill Vice President JD Vance's seat, according to a Wednesday statement. The committee accused his opponent, Brown, who had been the chairman of the Senate Banking Committee prior to losing his seat in 2024, of having "stood in the way of pro-innovation policies when it comes to digital assets."

The super PAC is partially funded by the Solana Institute and crypto venture firm Multicoin Capital, in addition to 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 behemoth, Strategy.

The leading donor to the PAC, though, is a nonprofit, Townsend Six Corp., which was established in late 2024 and backed by an $8 million contribution from an unidentified donor.

The Ohio election will be among the hotly contested Senate battles that decide the majority of that chamber for next year. While the lineup of open seats had been a difficult one for Democrats, the slip in Republican popularity during the administration of President Donald Trump has given Democrats a chance to retake that majority.

While polling last year had indicated that Husted had a strong lead over Brown, more recent polls have shown the race going neck and neck.

Sentinel joins the crypto industry's leading PAC, Fairshake, and this month's newly emerging Fellowship PAC, as entities supporting pro-digital assets candidates. When Brown was defeated in the 2024 elections, Fairshake had devoted $40 million to his opponent.

The Solana Policy Institute donated a total of $750,000 to the Sentinel Action Fund. The group, however, has split its party allegiances in its campaign spending. It gave $2 million to Republican congressional PACs and $1.5 million to Democratic PACs with opposing aims, according to Federal Election Commission records.

If Democrats win the Senate, House of Representatives or both, it could shift the course of crypto legislation, though the industry has amassed significant bipartisan support in Congress and is likely to add more names in the November midterm elections.