Abortion fights spark major spending in battleground states
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Tens of millions of dollars are fueling ads across platforms to push abortion rights measures that are expected to be on the ballot in Arizona, Nevada and Montana this year, according to AdImpact data.
Why it matters: Those same states could determine the next president and control of the Senate. Democrats hope having abortion on the ballot will keep the focus on their most potent issue — and turn out much-needed voters.
- Since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade two years ago, abortion rights have won out on the ballot in state after state.
- Having the option to vote to protect access to abortion in their state may help Democrats turn out important voting blocs like young people and women who are independents.
Zoom in: The biggest ad spends to bolster these ballot measures have been in Arizona and Nevada — states Biden narrowly won in 2020 and where Republicans are hoping an Election Day landslide will help them flip Senate seats.
- Nevadans for Reproductive Freedom has spent more than $17 million booking ad space starting next month and running through the election, according to AdImpact.
- Ad spend around abortion ballot measures was third greatest in the red state of Montana, where Sen. Jon Tester (D) is fighting to hold his seat.
- DSCC spokesperson Tommy Garcia told Axios: "The fight for reproductive freedom will once again be at the forefront of the issues landscape in Senate battlegrounds, and Senate Republican candidates' well-documented opposition to women's right to make their own health care decisions is a deal breaker for voters."
What to watch: There is also a major abortion ballot measure in Florida. There has been little money spent on ads so far — but that is expected to change in the next couple of weeks and in the run-up to November, a source close to the effort told Axios.
The other side: Republicans aim to assure voters of their candidates' opposition to a national abortion ban and accuse Democrats of distracting from other issues.
- But there is not nearly as much ad spending to fight the ballot measures. The antiabortion Susan B. Anthony group has spent just $3,000 in Montana, and its affiliated Women Speak Out PAC has spent less than $9,000 in Arizona, according to AdImpact.
- This year antiabortion groups spent nearly $1.5 million on ads in Minnesota and more than $800k in Michigan amid fights against abortion rights efforts in those states — to no avail.
What they're saying: "Democrats don't want to talk about Kamala Harris' role as border czar, her support for defunding the police, or her embrace of the failure that is Bidenomics, so they are going to run a single-issue campaign on abortion," NRSC spokesperson Mike Berg told Axios.
- "Kari Lake is the only woman and mom in the race. She opposes a national abortion ban," a spokesperson for Arizona Republican Senate candidate Kari Lake told Axios.
