Crypto’s political spending apparatus just got a new, narrowly focused addition. Defend Developers PAC launched on June 3, 2026, becoming the first political action committee built explicitly around one mission: keeping blockchain developers and open-source contributors out of legal crosshairs.
The PAC is led by Gavin Zavatone of the DeFi Education Fund, and it plans to raise over six figures to back congressional incumbents who support legal protections for non-custodial software builders. The timing is not accidental. Negotiations around the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act are ongoing, and the 2026 midterm elections are approaching fast.
A PAC with a very specific job
Crypto already has political money. The Fairshake super PAC reportedly has a war chest exceeding $190 million in spending capacity. The Digital Freedom Fund is another newer entrant. DDPAC isn’t trying to be a broad-spectrum lobbying vehicle. Its entire purpose is to support lawmakers who want to draw a clear legal line between people who write code and entities that custody or transmit money.
If you build a decentralized protocol but never touch user funds, DDPAC wants to make sure you’re not treated like a bank under securities law or the Bank Secrecy Act. The DeFi Education Fund has been pushing this argument for a while, assembling a coalition of over 100 industry signatories urging Congress to carve out non-custodial software providers from traditional financial regulation. DDPAC formalizes that advocacy into electoral spending.
