LEILA FADEL, HOST:
Voters in the battleground state of Arizona go to the polls today to cast ballots in primary races for the U.S. House and Senate. One of those contests, a Democratic primary for a House seat in Phoenix, has drawn a group of Republican donors. The Winklevoss twins of Facebook fame, the crypto industry and a major GOP donor are all vying to sway the results. NPR's congressional correspondent Claudia Grisales has more.
CLAUDIA GRISALES, BYLINE: When it comes to congressional races, donors traditionally focus on supporting candidates in their own party, but that's not what's happening in one Phoenix, Ariz., race for a U.S. House seat.
RAQUEL TERAN: Voters deserve to know who is doing this and why.
GRISALES: That's top state Democratic leader Raquel Teran, a former Arizona lawmaker who is running in her party's primary for the 3rd Congressional District. She's facing off against a former Phoenix City Council member who has seen an infusion of cash from Republican donors.
TERAN: Republican-funded groups and Trump donors are trying to buy this seat and silence the voices of Latino voters.
GRISALES: This majority-Latino district is represented now by Democrat Ruben Gallego, who's running for the U.S. Senate. Now, Republican supporters for former President Donald Trump have directed more than $1 million to the primary. The recipient of that support, Democrat Yassamin Ansari, slams claims she's colluding with the GOP.
YASSAMIN ANSARI: It is illegal to coordinate with any outside org.
GRISALES: Both candidates are looking to make history in Congress, with Teran hoping to become the state's first elected Latina representative and Ansari as the first Democratic Iranian American. Ansari, the former Phoenix vice mayor, has received support from a crypto political action committee known as Protect Progress. Crypto donors include Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, once largely known for claims they created the idea behind Facebook, but as they told Forbes...
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)
TYLER WINKLEVOSS: My name is Tyler Winklevoss. I am the CEO and co-founder of Gemini.
CAMERON WINKLEVOSS: Hi. I'm Cameron Winklevoss. I'm the president and co-founder of Gemini, and Tyler was kind enough to hire me.
GRISALES: They're now major players, after launching their crypto firm 10 years ago. Ansari says she has no connection to the twins and argues her push for innovation in the digital-asset industry has drawn the interests of these crypto-aligned donors. She rejects claims it's anything more nefarious.
ANSARI: It's a desperate attack from a campaign that has not spent much time at all focusing on what they actually want to do for residents, but more on trying to tear down another Democrat.
GRISALES: This is not the first time crypto has made its way into a Democratic primary with a significant Latino population. Fallen industry mogul Sam Bankman-Fried tried to prop up a House candidate in Oregon in the last election cycle. Ultimately, crypto's preferred candidate in that contest lost. Teran says she's still perplexed how crypto came to play such a big role in her race.
TERAN: This is not top of mind for people in our district, just to say it. Nobody brings up crypto when we're knocking on doors.
GRISALES: But even as major Republican donors try to shape this Democratic race, ultimately, voters will have the last word in Arizona.
Claudia Grisales, NPR News. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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