Crypto and AI super PACs spent $250M in 2026 midterms, but lost 9/12 competitive races called so far, spending $74.7M on losing candidates and $28.3M on winners (Molly White/Citation Needed)
Across the 2026 midterms, political action committees representing the crypto and artificial intelligence sectors mobilized a massive quarter-billion-dollar war chest. Despite this heavy financial intervention, these committees were defeated in nine of the 12 competitive races decided to date. In those pivotal contests, the groups committed $74.7 million backing losing candidates while allocating only $28.3 million to winners. This poor conversion rate demonstrates significant friction in converting industry cash directly into electoral influence.
Key points
Huge campaign outlays from tech super PACs largely failed to deliver victories in key com…: Huge campaign outlays from tech super PACs largely failed to deliver victories in key competitive districts.
Financial data reveals these political groups spent more than double on defeated candidat…: Financial data reveals these political groups spent more than double on defeated candidates than on victorious ones.
Significant capital deployment alone proved insufficient to ensure widespread political s…: Significant capital deployment alone proved insufficient to ensure widespread political success during the 2026 midterms.
Sources checked by our analysis pipeline: 1
Bloomberg: |
Nick Wingfield / The Information: |
Stephanie Findlay / Financial Times: |
Calder Mchugh / Politico: |
Ben Thompson / Stratechery: |
Politico: |
Financial Times: |
Molly White / Citation Needed: |
Washington Post: |
Sasha Rogelberg / Fortune: |
Financial Times: |
Bloomberg: |
Jagmeet Singh / TechCrunch: |
Madison Mills / Axios: |
Bloomberg: |
David Swan / The Age: |
Apple Developer: |
Bloomberg: |
Mike Butcher / Pathfounders: |
Bloomberg: |
Sawdah Bhaimiya / CNBC: |
Ben Gartside / Wired: |
Reuters: |
Danial Azhar / Bloomberg: |
Stephen Council / Business Insider: |
SemiAnalysis: |
Katie Tarasov / CNBC: |
Neil Kakkar / The Pragmatic Engineer: |
Bloomberg: |
This is a Techmeme archive page. It shows how the site appeared at 10:20 AM ET, November 4, 2026.
The most current version of the site as always is available at our home page. To view an earlier snapshot click here and then modify the date indicated.
Following guidance from the Department for Education based on academic David Bell's review, officials are being contested by the Good Law Project for urging schools to embrace the controversial benchmark. Opponents warn the framework curtails legitimate geopolitical debate by branding speech regarding Israel as anti-Jewish discrimination. The clash highlights mounting concerns over speech restrictions and methodological errors in the research informing state educational policies.
Lawmakers are operating under a tight Dec. 11 budget deadline during a transitional period where Republicans still hold power despite Democrats winning both chambers for the upcoming term. This compressed schedule requires any pending health policy items to hitch a ride on the must-pass federal spending legislation. The dynamic creates intense pressure on outgoing leadership to finalize key agency personnel and fiscal priorities before the transfer of power in January.
The former president lashed out after Democrats seized control of both congressional chambers, pointing to Democratic state flips in Texas, South Carolina, and Kansas. He argued that the network alienated conservative viewers and facilitated Republican defeats by giving excessive airtime to opposing party figures. This public rupture comes despite his regular appearances on the channel, including an interview just one day prior.