Democrats won both chambers of Congress in the 2026 US midterms and will take control in January, giving them a chance to reshape the stalled CLARITY Act, a bill on federal crypto-market rules. The Senate failed to advance the bill in September, partly amid disagreements over ethics provisions; Democratic control does not rule out its passage. Representative Shri Thanedar says he remains hopeful it can pass but wants stronger ethics requirements.
Crypto companies contributed $233 million to political committees during the midterm cycle, according to Public Citizen’s analysis of federal filings. House Democrats are reportedly considering a broader bill that could add consumer protections, a greater role for the Securities and Exchange Commission, and restrictions on public officials’ crypto activities. After a reported $6.3 billion Binance hack on Oct. 29, 1inch lawyer Maylea Ma said the current CLARITY draft would not have prevented the loss and that the incident could make lawmakers less willing to pass it without stronger protections.
