The New Tailors of the American Election: Crypto, AI and Bookmakers Pour Record Millions into Politics

A handful of billionaires and companies are leading the wave of corporate spending in this year's US congressional elections, but these are no longer the traditional centers of power that have dominated political Washington for decades.

Crypto companies, artificial intelligence firms and online gambling have become the biggest industries shaping the 2026 midterm elections, fueling record business spending on congressional races, according to data from campaign finance trackers and Reuters interviews with more than a dozen political strategists from both parties.

The new money pouring into American politics is coming from a new class of billionaires from industries that barely existed a generation ago, taking over the space traditionally occupied by Wall Street, as well as the pharmaceutical, oil and media industries, strategists from both parties say.

As lawmakers across the country seek tighter oversight and regulation of these industries, their founders are using their newfound wealth to gain allies, influence rules, and oppose these efforts.

US companies spent a record $517 million on the 2026 House and Senate elections in the 15 months ending in the first quarter, surpassing the previous record of $461 million in corporate spending over two years for the 2024 elections, according to data compiled by the nonprofit corporate accountability organization Public Citizen.