Crypto PAC Backs Jon Husted, Plans $8M for Ohio Senate Race

Sentinel Action Fund announced its endorsement of Republican Jon Husted for Ohio’s U.S. Senate on Wednesday, citing former Senator Sherrod Brown’s record on digital assets as a key factor. The group described itself as a conservative Super PAC that advances pro-crypto candidates.

Federal Election Commission filings through Tuesday show no disbursements from the PAC supporting Husted in 2026. The organization reported raising about $9 million from January 2025 through March 2026, including $750,000 from the Solana Policy Institute and $250,000 from Multicoin Capital.

Sentinel and its sister organization, Right Vote, pledged a combined expenditure of more than $8 million in Ohio. The groups said the funds will focus on supporting candidates and policies favorable to digital asset innovation ahead of the state’s May 5 primary and the general election.

Jon Husted was appointed by Governor Mike DeWine in January 2025 to replace J.D. Vance after Vance was elected vice president in 2024. Husted faces multiple Republican challengers as he seeks the nomination.

On the Democratic side, Sherrod Brown, who lost his seat in 2024, has declared he will run again and faces a contested primary that includes Ron Kincaid.

Crypto-aligned political spending in Ohio has been significant in recent cycles. In 2024, PACs backed by the cryptocurrency industry spent more than $40 million in the state to support Republican Bernie Moreno’s campaign against Brown.

Statewide races in Ohio have also drawn attention to crypto-related proposals. Republican gubernatorial candidate Vivek Ramaswamy has proposed creating a strategic Bitcoin reserve for the state. His financial disclosures list roughly a 10% stake in Strive, a company that reported holding about 13,768 Bitcoin, valued at over $1 billion. Observers have raised concerns about potential conflicts of interest if state investment decisions affected the value of those holdings.

The Sentinel endorsement highlights continued financial involvement by cryptocurrency-aligned groups in Ohio elections. The PAC framed its support as backing candidates who favor pro-crypto innovation, and its reported donors and spending pledge outline the scale of resources it plans to deploy in the race.