2024's priciest Senate races
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Since the start of the year, there have been $723 million worth of campaign ad buys for just three Senate races: in Ohio, Pennsylvania and Montana, according to AdImpact data.
Why it matters: A fierce battle for control of the Senate is fueling the expected record-breaking ad spending this election cycle. The investment so far points to the races both parties deem most critical for the majority.
Zoom in: Democrats have long held a fundraising advantage over Republicans, which is helping them play defense in nine competitive Senate races.
- Ohio is the only Senate race in which Republicans have been spending more than Democrats on campaign ads and reservations — though this is largely due to it having one of the only highly competitive Senate GOP primaries this year. Republican Bernie Moreno won the Ohio primary and will face Democratic incumbent Sen. Sherrod Brown in November.
- The showdowns between Sen. Bob Casey (D) and Dave McCormick in Pennsylvania and Sen. Jon Tester (D) and Tim Sheehy in Montana come in second and third for ad spending and booking for both parties, so far.
- The $70.5 million of spending in California was driven by heated Senate primary. Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) is expected to have an easy general election in November.
- Totals include ad reservations made so far through Election Day, though those reservations are expected to keep coming.
Zoom out: Republicans have zeroed in on ousting popular Democratic senators in Montana and Ohio — both states Trump handily won in 2020.
- Pennsylvania remains at the the heart of the 2024 cycle as a critical swing state for the presidential and holding a competitive Senate race as well as four competitive House races.
What to watch: There will be even more ad buys announced as the year's primaries wrap up.
- The Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell-linked One Nation and NRSC on Wednesday both launched multimillion-dollar ad buys for the Michigan race, for example.
