Crypto and AI firms spend big in Illinois primaries and lose often

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Artificial intelligence and cryptocurrency companies entered Illinois Democratic primaries with large, late-cycle infusions of outside spending—aimed at shaping how the technologies are regulated—even as the effort met resistance from voters and became a lightning rod in competitive races with several open seats.

The Associated Press reported that the companies used super PACs that can spend unlimited sums, flooding Illinois with television advertising and campaign fliers that only occasionally referenced the industries directly. Much of the messaging, AP said, focused instead on promises to combat President Donald Trump’s administration and support liberal policies—an approach similar to strategies used by other major political organizations.

In a key contest, the crypto-backed PAC Fairshake spent more than $10 million against Illinois Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton. Stratton ultimately won the Democratic nomination to succeed Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., even though Fairshake also targeted her and her allies with additional spending through the primary campaign season.

Fairshake and Protect Progress, a separate group tied to the crypto industry, spent millions more trying to back Stratton’s main rivals, U.S. Reps. Raja Krishnamoorthi and Robin Kelly, according to Federal Election Commission filings. But both candidates lost their bids in the Democratic primaries that determined who would advance.

The tech-backed spending also played out across Illinois’ U.S. House primaries in mixed results, AP reported. State Rep. La Shawn Ford, who supported legislation regulating the AI and crypto industries, won the Democratic primary to succeed U.S. Rep. Danny Davis. AP said Fairshake spent nearly $2.5 million opposing Ford, in a race that included multiple other political groups spending against Ford and for his opponents.

Another U.S. House nomination contest ended up favoring progressive incumbent-aligned candidates despite outside spending. Cook County Commissioner Donna Miller prevailed in the Democratic primary to succeed Kelly, with AP reporting that Fairshake spent more than $800,000 against state Sen. Robert Peters, another progressive who backed legislation regulating the crypto industry.

AP reported that in that race, AI-backed spending clashed as well. Think Big PAC invested more than $1 million to support Jesse Jackson Jr., a former congressman who pleaded guilty in a fraud scandal in 2013, while Jobs and Democracy PAC mounted about $1 million in negative campaign spending against Jackson.

Leading the Future, an umbrella organization for AI political groups, funded Think Big PAC, AP said. AP also reported that Leading the Future has been backed by major Silicon Valley executives, including the venture capitalist Marc Andreessen, who opposes federal regulations for AI and has backed President Donald Trump’s AI policies.

Jobs and Democracy PAC, by contrast, is funded by the AI company Anthropic and AP reported that it favors some safety regulations on AI as the technology develops. The PACs opposed progressive candidates who called for relatively heavier regulations on AI and crypto technologies and for higher taxes on wealthy Americans.

AP said the tech-backed spending delivered at least one bright spot for the AI industry: former congresswoman Melissa Bean won the Democratic nomination to reclaim her old seat after a crowded and intense primary. AP reported that Bean’s campaign received support from about $1 million in funding from AI-backed groups.

In a statement included in AP’s report, Josh Vlasto, a political strategist for Leading the Future, said Bean “recognizes that the United States must work toward a national regulatory framework on AI that creates jobs, helps us stay ahead of China, and protects the safety of kids, users, and the community.” He also said Leading the Future was “proud to support her campaign and looks forward to working with leaders who will prioritize innovation over doomerism.”

Campaign finance analysts and voters still had difficulty reading the political impact of the industry’s spending, AP reported. Brian Gaines, a political science professor at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, said public opinion was still forming because voters have not yet developed a clear signal about where progressive and moderate candidates stand on AI and crypto policies.

“They’re so new to the game that public opinion isn’t very well formed about them,” Gaines said. He added, “People are wary of the technology, but they don’t know what to think yet.”