Winklevoss twins, crypto ties form Arizona primary race: NPR

A Democratic primary race for a US House seat in Phoenix, Arizona, has attracted a curious group of interests: the Winklevoss twins of Facebook fame, cryptocurrency industry forces and Republican donors.

The high-profile affair is the latest reminder of outside groups moving to extend their reach into the US House, with control of the lower chamber at stake. Arizona, a critical battleground that will play a large role in national races this year, holds its primary elections on Tuesday.

The three-way Democratic contest for the state’s 3rd Congressional District features former Arizona legislator Raquel Terán, former city council member Yassamin Ansari and pediatrician Dr. Duane Wooten. The poll shows the the main contenders are Terán, a Latina, and Iranian-American Ansari, both of whom are vying to make history with their personal backgrounds. They want to fill the seat of Rep. Ruben Gallego, who is running for the United States Senate.

“We’ve come a long way. We’ve built a really impressive, young and diverse team that’s knocked on more than 150,000 doors,” Ansari told NPR. She resigned from her seat on the Phoenix City Council in march to launch his campaign to become the first Iranian-American Democrat to serve in Congress.

However, Ansari has sparked controversy over support for his campaign from outside donors, including the Winklevoss twins, a Republican-aligned crypto political action committee and a major donor to former President Donald Trump. It’s backlash against Terán and others who question his democratic credentials, an issue that has also plagued Ansari during his 2021 city council run.

“It was outrageous then, it’s outrageous now,” she said, noting that she was labeled a “progressive minority” on the Phoenix city council. “So my record is clear. And I think voters can see through these types of deceptive and desperate attacks.

U.S. House candidate Yassamin Ansari, a former member of the Phoenix City Council, is shown here at a climate rally in Phoenix in 2022.

Jason Wise/Getty Images for Green New Deal Network, Climate Action Campaign

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Jason Wise/Getty Images for Green New Deal Network, Climate Action Campaign

Terán, a former state senator and House member vying to become the first Latina to represent the state in Congress, isn’t buying it.

“These individuals are funding Donald Trump,” Terán, the former state Senate minority leader and chairman of the Democratic Party, told NPR. “They’re trying to silence our voices as Latino voters. They’re trying to infiltrate Democratic primaries, taking away the voice of many working families. And I think it’s important that we expose the fact that outside spending is coming into our district.

Questions about crypto links

Terán, who was born in the United States but grew up in Mexico, claims his long political career — from a liberal activist gathering signatures on a long list of issues to the highest-ranking Democratic state lawmaker — has made his campaign a target for Ansari’s Republican donors.

She is also puzzled as to why Ansari has attracted the interest of the crypto industry. This isn’t the first time mysterious crypto ties have come up in a Democratic House primary contest, as it has become an issue in a 2022 Oregon race, with fallen crypto tycoon Sam Bankman-Fried at center stage. .

“This is not top of mind for people in our district,” said Terán. “Nobody carries crypto when we knock on the doors.”

U.S. House candidate Raquel Terán, left, is seen here during a 2022 campaign event in Tucson, Arizona, with first lady Jill Biden and then-Senate candidate Sen. Mark Kelly ( D-Ariz.).

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Arizona’s third congressional district includes parts of downtown, south and west Phoenix and is a 65% Latino majority district, marking a blue seat in the purple state.

Federal Election Commission documents show that the Ansari campaign pulled more than $1.3 million from the GOP-based crypto group Protect Progress PACwhich is supported by Trump supporters as Marc Andreessen and Ben Horowitz. The group has endorsed Trump, former GOP presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy and House Republican leadership team member New York Rep. Elise Stefanik.

Last year, Texas billionaire Hushang Ansary — no relation — directed $6,600, the maximum allowed, to Ansari’s campaign, The FEC files show. The Republican donor for Trump and others in recent years he has been found responsible for fraud linked to a massive pension fund based in the Caribbean.

However, the candidate said he was among a group of family friends energized by their shared heritage and revolutionary campaign, Ansari said.

Donors like Ansary “hate my policies … but that’s not why they support me,” he said. “It makes them proud to see someone of their … background running for Congress and have … a high chance of potentially winning.”

Support from Winklevosses

Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, who also donated to the Protect Progress PAC, also contributed the maximum allowed to Ansari’s campaign: $13,200, according to an FEC file.

Largely known as Republican donorsthe Winklevoss twins, who have long accused Alphabet Inc.’s Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg of stealing their social media idea, have become major crypto players.

Days after Vice President Kamala Harris was elevated to become the Democrats’ front-runner to replace President Biden, Tyler Winklevoss said she had betrayed her industry.

“We will show no mercy in November,” he said the July 24th post on Xformerly known as Twitter.

The group Protect Progress, Ansary and Winklevoss Capital did not immediately respond to requests for comment from NPR.

In 2022, crypto played a major role in a new race for the Oregon House district with the largest Latino population in the state, supporting a political unknown, Carrick Flynn, who took a massive boost from Bankman- Fried. Democratic Rep. Andrea Salinas went on to defeat Flynn despite big spending the race

Ansari said she has “no connection” to the Winklevoss twins, and suspects that her focus new emerging technologies may have attracted their interest.

“We talked about being pro-innovation and we really want to regulate the digital asset industry,” he said, “and figure out how we can continue to innovate here.… and keep some of these jobs in the United States”

Ansari in an interview tried to redirect the attention from her Republican donors, back to her work in the district, and the approval she took from organizations such as labor unions and teachers .

The Congressional Hispanic Caucus supports Teran

Terán, meanwhile, has drawn support from Bold PAC, the campaign arm of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus. It also received endorsements from a wide range of labor, Latino and equity organizations, as well as those focused on women’s reproductive issues, such as Planned Parenthood.

Congressional Democrats, including the head of House Caucus No. 3, California Rep. Pete Aguilar, and Arizona Senator Mark Kelly in the upper chamber, also lined up in support.

The bold president of PAC, Linda Sánchez, a democratic representative from California, argues that donor groups outside of trying to erase the voices of more than 500,000 Latinos in the third of Arizona.

“So a massive effort to silence Latino voices in this crucial swing state begs the question: What is this outside group really offering?” Sanchez asked in a statement.

The group’s executive director, Victoria McGroary, said the race is a reminder of the critical points on the line for House Democrats, Latino voters and Arizona.

“In a state where we have such a huge Latino population, where the Latino population makes a difference in races across the state and certainly in a presidential cycle and where the Senate is on the line — our community has to make the difference,” he told NPR.

“And really, that center of power is really concentrated in the third district. This is the legacy of Latino representation in the state of Arizona.