Midterm elections concluded, what lies ahead for the CLARITY Act?

The CLARITY Act (H.R. 3633), which would make the CFTC the primary regulator for digital commodities while preserving SEC authority over securities, failed a Senate cloture vote on September 15 by 49-50, falling 11 short of the 60-vote threshold, with all 49 yes votes from Republicans and every voting Democrat opposed. Democrats swept both chambers in the midterms and will control the 119th Congress from January 3, 2027, leaving little incentive to compromise during the lame-duck session; the House had passed the bill 294-134 in July 2025. Only two paths remain before the current Congress ends: re-vote on Senator Thom Tillis's reconsideration motion with a revised, Democrat-acceptable text, or attach market-structure provisions to must-pass December legislation such as government funding (expiring December 11) or the NDAA. Stablecoin oversight is already covered separately by the GENIUS Act, with the OCC drafting issuer rules, so the pending CLARITY Act concerns token classification, exchange supervision, and the SEC-CFTC jurisdictional split. Watch whether Senate Republicans can secure 11 net Democratic votes in a lame-duck floor vote or fold the bill into year-end spending legislation, with the midterm-driven loss of Republican senator Susan Collins to Democrat Troy Jackson further complicating the math.