Kennedy Votes to Lock GOP Majority for CLARITY Act

Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) will vote to advance the Digital Asset Market CLARITY Act at Thursday’s Senate Banking Committee markup, securing Republican control of the 13-to-11 panel and ensuring the bill can move out of committee regardless of how Democrats vote.

Kennedy reached an agreement with Chairman Tim Scott to add a fiduciary-duty provision for crypto industry workers and to attach Sen. Elizabeth Warren’s Build Now Act housing bill to the package. Scott released a 309-page draft of the legislation on Tuesday after months of negotiations, including disputes over rules for stablecoin yields.

The House approved the CLARITY Act 294 to 134 in July 2025. The measure stalled in the Senate amid disagreements over stablecoin and market-structure provisions until the recent compromises produced the current draft.

White House crypto director David Sacks called the markup a “major win for U.S. competitiveness” and thanked Senate staff for the compromises that shaped the bill.

Senate Banking members filed more than 100 amendments before Wednesday’s deadline. Several Democrats, including Sens. Catherine Cortez Masto, Andy Kim, Chris Van Hollen, Elizabeth Warren and Jack Reed, submitted proposals the DeFi Education Fund described as “anti‑DeFi.” Those amendments seek changes to the Blockchain Regulatory Certainty Act, limits on protections for noncontrolling software developers, new rules for DeFi front-end interfaces and adjustments to tokenization provisions.

Kennedy plans to consider Democratic amendments during the markup but indicated an ethics-related provision is unlikely to be adopted in committee. The deal to add fiduciary-duty language and attach Warren’s housing bill secured the vote needed to move the measure forward.

Polymarket traders put the odds of Senate passage in 2026 at about 73%, and recent polling shows a majority of voters support the framework. If the committee approves the CLARITY Act, the measure will go to the Senate floor for further consideration before the Memorial Day recess.

The CLARITY Act is written to clarify federal oversight of digital-asset markets with a focus on stablecoins, market structure and investor protections. The draft reflects months of negotiation among senators, industry stakeholders and administration officials aimed at providing clearer rules for market participants.