John Deaton Could Pose Midterm Challenge to MA Sen. Ed Markey, Survey Finds
The former Warren challenger could be competitive against Massachusetts’ junior senator in 2026
Welcome to the Friday edition of the Crypto In America newsletter!
John Deaton may not be done with politics just yet.
The crypto lawyer and former U.S. Senate candidate, who lost to incumbent Elizabeth Warren in 2024, could have a shot at shaking up Massachusetts politics again in the 2026 midterm elections.
That’s according to a new SurveyUSA poll, commissioned by the Massachusetts Responsible Alliance — a group of voters eager to keep Deaton in the political conversation — which surveyed 775 registered voters across the Bay State and found that Deaton, a moderate Republican, could be a serious contender in a hypothetical 2026 race against Democratic Senator Ed Markey - if voters hear his message.
At first glance, the poll numbers looked pretty standard for the heavily blue Massachusetts: Markey held a solid lead, 45% to Deaton’s 26%, with 30% undecided. But once voters were told more about Deaton’s centrist views, his pro-choice stance and his independence from Donald Trump, the results shifted dramatically. Deaton gained 15 points, pulling ahead 41% to 38%. After leaners were accounted for, he led by as much as seven points — a notable 22-point swing.
Deaton’s distancing from Trump appears to be his calling card, with 43% of voters saying they’re more likely to support him after learning he didn’t back the president in the 2024 election. On the flip side, the survey results suggest this could hurt him in a potential GOP primary, with 37% of MAGA conservatives saying they'd be less likely to vote for Deaton. As a moderate Republican, Deaton outperformed Trump in Massachusetts during the 2024 election, receiving 3.3 percentage points more than the Republican presidential nominee.
For Markey, who’s served as the junior Massachusetts Senator since 2013, the poll shows his age may be his biggest vulnerability. Nearly half of voters surveyed say his turning 80 in 2026 and five decades in Washington, including 37 years in the House, make them less likely to support him.
“The poll was a surprise and I’m humbled folks want me to run again,” Deaton told Crypto In America. “The fact that Ed Markey is running again after being in Washington for 50 years tells you everything you need to know about how broken our system is today.”
Deaton, 57, is an advocate for term limits for members of Congress and made it a key issue in his 2024 campaign against the 75-year-old Warren.
A press rep for Markey did not immediately respond to request for comment.
Whether the positive polling numbers in this particular survey will translate into a serious 2026 run for Deaton remains to be seen. However, if he chooses to jump back into the political ring, he won’t be starting from scratch this time.
SEC Holds Roundtable on Crypto Trading
The SEC’s Crypto Task Force will hold the second of five industry roundtables on crypto regulation this afternoon. The event, titled Between a Block and a Hard Place: Tailoring Regulation for Crypto Trading, will focus on adapting regulation for crypto trading and will feature a moderator and nine panelists from major crypto trading platforms like Coinbase, Uniswap, FalconX and Cumberland DRW.
The roundtable starts at 1:00 PM EST. Watch it here.
Weekly Recap
Here are some of the biggest news stories this week from the intersection of Washington and Web3:
President Trump signed the first ever crypto bill into law that blocks the Internal Revenue Service from collecting tax reporting data from decentralized crypto platforms. Read more on the milestone here.
The SEC’s Division of Corporation Finance released new guidance laying out its current thinking on how federal securities laws apply to crypto asset-related offerings and disclosures. The move is part of the agency’s broader effort to establish clear rules of the road for digital assets.
The SEC approved options trading on Wall Street’s Ethereum spot ETFs, allowing traders to bet on the price movements of the world’s second largest digital currency.
In a 52-44 vote, the Senate confirmed Paul Atkins to be the next chair of the Securities and Exchange Commission. Atkins’ confirmation will now be sent to the White House, where President Trump will sign off on it. Once that happens, Atkins will be officially sworn in.
New York Attorney General Letitia James sent a letter to congressional leaders, including Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) and Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), urging them to pass a federal regulatory framework for digital assets. James emphasized that such a framework is necessary to address fraud, criminal activity, and financial instability in the crypto space. She also raised concerns that widespread adoption of Bitcoin could threaten the dominance of the dollar and advised against allowing the inclusion of digital assets in retirement accounts.
In response to James' letter, Veronica McGregor, the Chief Legal Officer at the crypto wallet provider Exodus, had this to say:
"While we agree there needs to be sensible digital asset legislation passed at the federal level, AG James' suggestions would not promote U.S. dominance in the crypto industry. In fact, they would do quite the opposite. Her negative characterization of the entire industry wrongly dismisses the benefits that crypto brings to our economy and fails to recognize why the industry exists in the first place. We need practical, forward-looking policies that promote financial independence and autonomy, not policies that further promote traditional finance."
Remember, new editions of the Crypto In America newsletter drop every Monday, Wednesday and Friday at 7AM EST.
If you like what you’re reading, don’t forget to subscribe!
I Iove the link/s, along with dates & times when it's a streaming event of some type.