"Bitcoin Senator" Lummis will not seek re-election, and cryptocurrency legislation may face a new power balance.

Last Saturday, U.S. Republican Senator Cynthia Lummis, known in the cryptocurrency field as the "Bitcoin Senator," announced that she would not seek re-election in 2026. She stated that after a "difficult and exhausting few weeks of meetings," she is unable to take on another six-year term.

Lummis's departure comes at a critical moment in the U.S. encryption legislative process, undoubtedly having a significant impact on the industry. As a representative from Wyoming and the chair of the Senate Banking Committee's Digital Assets Subcommittee, Lummis has been a key advocate for several core encryption legislations.

She participated in proposing the "Bitcoin Act," which advocates for strengthening the federal strategic Bit reserve, and actively promoted key legislation on stablecoins and market structure, the "GENIUS Act." In addition, her advocacy on specific policies such as promoting tax exemptions for small transactions is also seen as significant reform by the industry.

Therefore, her retirement decision has cast a significant shadow over the prospects of these pending key bills. Industry analysts believe that her unique bipartisan coordination skills, deep technical knowledge, and leadership role in the committee are hard to replace quickly, which may make the clarification process of encryption regulation even longer and more uncertain.

After the announcement, the encryption community generally expressed regret and gratitude, with several industry leaders praising her as a "great ally in the encryption field" and affirming her irreplaceable role in Congress.

Lummis's current term will last until January 2027, and she has expressed her anticipation of collaborating with President Trump on legislation in 2026. Nevertheless, whoever ultimately succeeds her in her seat in Wyoming will still find it difficult to replicate her influence in the short term.

Her departure also means that the future political map of encryption in the United States will need to be redrawn, the process of the industry striving for a clear regulatory framework will become more complex and tortuous, and the future policy game structure will also face new adjustments in power balance.

#Bitcoin Senator