John Deaton senate
John Deaton is looking to dethrone Democratic Sen. Elizabeth Warren from the seat she has held for 11 years. John Deaton campaign website/screenshot

KEY POINTS

  • The Winklevoss twins and Brad Garlinghouse all made donations to Deaton's campaign
  • Deaton took a stand for XRP holders after the SEC sued Ripple
  • The US Marine veteran previously questioned Warren's anti-crypto rhetoric

Pro-crypto lawyer John Deaton outraised Democratic Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren during the first quarter of the year, as per the Republican senatorial candidate's preliminary election filings, thanks to some donations from several key names in the cryptocurrency industry.

Deaton raised a total of $1.36 million in the first quarter of 2024, according to the lawyer's preliminary filings with the Federal Election Commission (FEC). Sen. Warren, on the other hand, raised some $1.09 million in Q1 2024 as per her FEC filings. On the other hand, it can be worth noting that Warren's funds were from donors, while Deaton loaned $1 million to his campaign's fundraising.

Still, it was the individuals that supported his campaign with nearly $360,700 in the first quarter of the year that sparked hope for a cryptocurrency industry that's often under scrutiny by some lawmakers.

Data from the FEC showed that among the well-known figures in the crypto industry who donated to Deaton's cause financially were Chris Larsen, co-founder of digital asset custody giant Ripple, crypto exchange and custodian bank founders the Winklevoss twins Tyler and Cameron, and Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse.

Other prominent figures in the crypto industry that helped pump Deaton's campaign are Bitcoiner and Skybridge Capital founder Anthony Scaramucci and co-founder of leading crypto exchange Kraken, Jesse Powell.

Notably, Deaton stood behind holders of XRP, the native crypto of Ripple, when the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filed a lawsuit against the crypto giant. At the time, he filed a motion to intervene on behalf of thousands of XRP holders, saying the voices of owners of the digital coin were not adequately represented.

In December, Deaton called out Warren for being "the single best critic of Bitcoin and crypto," but she was not as critical as she could've been with disgraced ex-FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried, who was convicted of fraud and sentenced to 25 years.

Deaton noted that "Warren preaches against crypto every chance she can, but doesn't ask why [SEC chief Gary] Gensler missed @FTXOfficial," and the collapsed Luna Network of Do Kwon, who is awaiting extradition either to the U.S. or South Korea for fraud-related charges.

Deaton, who is also a U.S. Marine veteran, started being interested in cryptocurrencies in 2016, his campaign website states. "He was particularly drawn to cryptocurrency's ability to help the underprivileged and unbanked."

The obvious underdog has a long way to go to unseat Warren, who has held on to the post for more than a decade, but being a cancer survivor, Deaton has said he will beat the odds once more in this battle for Massachusetts.