Pennsylvania Senate candidate David McCormick (R) on primary election night in 2022. Photo: Jeff Swensen/Getty Images
A super PAC supporting Republican David McCormick's Senate run in Pennsylvania is launching a $4 million TV ad buy today, its first in one of the most-watched contests of the 2024 campaign.
Why it matters: Pennsylvania's race between McCormick and Democratic incumbent Bob Casey Jr. could determine which party controls the Senate next year — and is a prime opportunity for Republicans to gain a seat.
Driving the news: Keystone Renewal PAC's first ad focuses on McCormick's time at West Point and his earning a Bronze Star while serving in the Gulf War.
- The ad promoting the former hedge fund CEO will run for four weeks beginning on cable, broadcast and digital platforms in the Pittsburgh, Scranton, Harrisburg and Johnstown markets.
- McMormick's campaign aims to make his military service a constant theme in his campaign against Casey, who's seeking his fourth six-year term in the Senate.
- McCormick is making his second run for the Senate. In 2022 he lost in the GOP primary to Mehmet Oz, who went on to lose to Democrat John Fetterman in the midterm election.
Between the lines: The McCormick ad's focus on "duty, honor and country" echoes an ad his official campaign put out last week.
- The PAC announced in January that it had raised $18 million, setting up one of the most expensive elections in the country this year.
- Casey has backing from the Democratic Party's Senate-focused super PAC and ended the first quarter of this year with $11 million cash on hand, compared to $6.4 million for McCormick.
- McCormick — a former CEO of the Bridgewater Associates hedge fund — spent millions of his personal fortune on his 2022 campaign and can self-fund his campaign this time as well.