Posted October 28, 2024 | by KimS | in 2024 Presidential Election, DemDaily, Democratic Party, Donald Trump, Kamala Harris

DemDaily: Democrats Dominate Ads and Airwaves

October 28, 2024

With just one week until the historic 2024 election, candidates, the parties and outside groups are saturating the airwaves nationwide to get their message out to undecided voters -- and Democrats are dominating the ad wars.

From August 1 to October 25, Democratic campaigns and PACs poured $213 million more into TV broadcast advertising than their Republican opponents and secured a lead of 9.9 billion ad views nationwide. The figures are based on a New York Times analysis of 3.7 million broadcast TV political ads -- drawn from advertising data provided by AdImpact, and TV viewership estimates of each ad by Comscore.

From August 1 to October 25, Democratic campaigns and PACs poured $213 million more into TV broadcast advertising than their Republican opponents and secured a lead of 9.9 billion ad views nationwide. The figures are based on a New York Times analysis of 3.7 million broadcast TV political ads -- drawn from advertising data provided by AdImpact, and TV viewership estimates of each ad by Comscore.

Presidential
Figures between July 22 to October 9 had Vice President Kamala Harris' campaign outspending Donald Trump's two-to-one on TV advertising -- $456.3 million vs. $204.3 million.

Since launching her campaign, Harris has outpaced Donald Trump -- racking up 11.8 billion ad views to Trump’s 8.5 billion.

Democrats have outspent Republicans on presidential TV ads by wide margins in key swing states, with 79% of ad spending going to battlegrounds Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, North Carolina, Nevada, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.

Harris' ads focused on taxation, healthcare, housing, and abortion, and now spots attacking the former president’s character -- painting him as a mentally unstable extremist.

Trump's ads play to voters concerns about inflation, the economy, housing, and immigration, while investing the most -- $30 million -- in anti-transgender ads attacking a "radical" Harris for her support for gender-affirming surgery for people in federal prisons. The ad, played during the World Series, NFL and college games, ends with “Kamala’s agenda is they/them. Not you.”

According to the Wesleyan Media Project, Harris and her allies also outspent Trump six-to-one on radio ads and three-to-one on Google and Meta between early and mid-October.

In total, so far in the 2024 election cycle, candidates, parties, and other groups have spent more than $619,090,533 on digital advertising concerning the election and political issues on the nation’s two largest online platforms: Google (which includes YouTube, Search, and third-party advertising) and Meta.

In total, so far in the 2024 election cycle, candidates, parties, and other groups have spent more than $619,090,533 on digital advertising concerning the election and political issues on the nation’s two largest online platforms: Google (which includes YouTube, Search, and third-party advertising) and Meta.

It is no surprise that presidential ad spending has been most heavily concentrated in top-targeted Pennsylvania.

Over the last three months, The Keystone State has been the beneficiary of about $100 million more in advertising than the second-ranked Michigan, with Democrats outspending Republicans by about $37 million.

The Trump campaign, however, holds a slight advantage in future on-air reservations in key battleground states, with their largest investment in Pennsylvania -- $58 million to Democrats' $47.8 from October 22 through Election Day.

DemList will keep you informed.