Republican candidate Bernie Moreno defeats incumbent Sherrod Brown for US Senate seat

Republican challenger Bernie Moreno defeated sitting US Senator Sherrod Brown Tuesday, according to Politico. Moreno was leading Brown 50.6% to 46% as of 11:30 pm ET, when 91% of votes had been reported.

Moreno had not yet made a public statement and Brown had not conceded as of time of publication. Both teams did not immediately respond to Blockworks’ request for comment.

Brown, the current chair of the Senate Banking Committee, has largely been seen by the crypto industry as an adversary. He voted against the resolution that sought to overturn the US Securities and Exchange Commission’s SAB 121 accounting guidance, which passed both chambers with bipartisan support before ultimately being vetoed by President Biden.

Senator Cynthia Lummis, R-Wyo., has complained that Brown has not been interested in getting crypto bills to the Committee for markup and votes, including the bipartisan effort Lummis has with Sen. Kristin Gillibrand, R-N.Y. Gillibrand was also up for re-election Tuesday, she defeated Republican Mike Sapraicone, earning 58% of the vote at time of publication.

Moreno, a car salesman, made crypto a central part of his messaging on the campaign trail, vowing to block a CBDC and fight against those looking to “destroy crypto.”

Defend American Jobs, a Fairshake-associated crypto super PAC, has spent more than $34 million supporting Moreno through the end of October, federal filings show.

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