Ad of the week: Putting his hand on the scale

Last week, Catherine Cortez Masto more than doubled her spending on YouTube ads, and a good chunk of that $236k is going toward bilingual video ads attacking Republican Adam Laxalt over his contempt for Roe v. Wade, his desire to deport DREAMers, and his willingness to overturn election results in Republicans’ favor. Here’s one of the ads with which Cortez Masto is blanketing the Silver State:

Quick facts:

• The top spending Senate candidate on digital ads last week was John Fetterman, who dropped $854,899.

• The state with the most expensive Senate race online last week was Pennsylvania, where candidates combined spent $1,013,839 on digital ads

• Democratic candidates in competitive races spent $4,121,277 on digital ads last week, while Republican candidates spent $662,328.

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Ad of the week: What does Braddock have to do with us?

Nimble as ever, the John Fetterman campaign is now running ads that seem to be geared toward Black Pennsylvanians in the state’s biggest cities. FWIW, these ads are mostly targeted at Millennials in PA:

What does Braddock, a forgotten steel town, have to do with us? It’s a small town where Black families face big problems just like ours. When John Fetterman became mayor, he worked with the community and the local police to reduce the violence. He built a community center for our young people, created new good-paying jobs, and he helped Black-owned businesses grow.

Quick facts:

• The top spending Senate candidate on digital ads last week was Raphael Warnock, who dropped $804,047.

• The state with the most expensive Senate race online last week was Georgia, where candidates combined spent $943,741 on digital ads

• Democratic candidates in competitive races spent $3,292,736 on digital ads last week, while Republican candidates spent $522,123.

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Ad of the week: That’s our team 🇺🇸

With less than three weeks to go now, we’re getting to see candidates’ closing ads. In Ohio, Tim Ryan has more than tripled his YouTube ad spending by pushing an ad highlighting the themes he’s been hitting all year: standing up to China, tax cuts for workers, and voting with Trump on trade.

Quick facts:

• The top spending Senate candidate on digital ads last week was Raphael Warnock, who dropped $1,069,356.

• The state with the most expensive Senate race online last week was Georgia, where candidates combined spent $1,196,059 on digital ads

• Democratic candidates in competitive races spent $3,459,226 on digital ads last week, while Republican candidates spent $592,604.

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Ad of the week: The Price of Milk

Mandela Barnes in Wisconsin is turning to the age-old tactic of accusing his rich opponent of not knowing the price of a gallon of milk - and he’s betting big on it. Their campaign has spent around $100k on this YouTube ad, which targets adults aged 25 and up in the Milwaukee and Green Bay media markets.

Quick facts:

• The top spending Senate candidate on digital ads last week was Raphael Warnock, who dropped $644,308.

• The state with the most expensive Senate race online last week was Georgia, where candidates combined spent $717,479 on digital ads

• Democratic candidates in competitive races spent $2,271,178 on digital ads last week, while Republican candidates spent $391,853.

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Ad of the week: That’s nuts!

Harking back to the Jimmy Carter legacy of Georgia’s peanuts, Raphael Warnock just put out a fun new ad touting his work - notably namedropping Alabama Sen. Tommy Tuberville - to support the Peach State’s peanut farmers.

Quick facts:

• The top spending Senate candidate on digital ads last week was Raphael Warnock, who dropped $644,308.

• The state with the most expensive Senate race online last week was Georgia, where candidates combined spent $717,479 on digital ads

• Democratic candidates in competitive races spent $2,271,178 on digital ads last week, while Republican candidates spent $391,853.

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Ad of the week: Silver State Values

The DSCC, the Democratic group dedicated to electing their candidates to the U.S. Senate, has been running state-specific attack campaigns online in Wisconsin, New Hampshire, and Georgia since mid-August. They’ve now added Nevada to the list with a page called “Silver State Values” to attack Republican nominee Adam Laxalt including spots in both English and Spanish criticizing his opposition to a fraud investigation into Big Oil while he was the Nevada AG. But they’re primarily targeting women in the Silver State to criticize Laxalt’s comments on abortion:

Adam Laxalt would take away my daughter’s rights. He would allow states to ban abortion even for victims of rape and incest. He called Roe v. Wade, “a joke.” My daughter’s rights aren’t a joke! Adam Laxalt is not for us.

Quick facts:

• The top spending Senate candidate on digital ads last week was Raphael Warnock, who dropped $556,217.

• The state with the most expensive Senate race online last week was Georgia, where candidates combined spent $645,198 on digital ads

• Democratic candidates in competitive races spent $2,205,289 on digital ads last week, while Republican candidates spent $383,619.

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Ad of the week: SIN EXCEPCIONES

In one of the first digital persuasion ads she’s run, Val Demings cleverly highlights her previous experience as a chief of police - La Jefa - with Marco Rubio’s support of a national abortion ban in a new Spanish Facebook ad:

Marco Rubio quiere prohibir el aborto sin excepciones por violación e incesto. Como ex Jefa de la policía, sé que la violación es un delito, el incesto es un delito, pero el aborto no lo es!

Marco Rubio wants to ban abortion without exceptions for rape and incest. As a former Chief of Police, I know that rape is a crime, incest is a crime, but abortion is not!

Quick facts:

• The top spending Senate candidate on digital ads last week was Raphael Warnock, who dropped $428,001.

• The state with the most expensive Senate race online last week was Georgia, where candidates combined spent $498,241 on digital ads

• Democratic candidates in competitive races spent $1,771,022 on digital ads last week, while Republican candidates spent $333,507.

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Ad of the week: Fuhgeddaboudit!

John Fetterman, continuing his streak of putting out phenomenal ads, is now calling attention to Dr. Oz’s various snake oils to highlight how untrustworthy the man is, especially since he’s admitted to Congress that his weight loss pills do nothing. They found a woman from Indiana, Pa., who really brings the ad home - you’ll have to see it for yourself:

Quick facts:

• The top spending Senate candidate on digital ads last week was Raphael Warnock, who dropped $496,988.

• The state with the most expensive Senate race online last week was Georgia, where candidates combined spent $557,608 on digital ads

• Democratic candidates in competitive races spent $1,599,822 on digital ads last week, while Republican candidates spent $223,431.

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Ad of the week: College debt

Raphael Warnock’s digital ad team is keeping up its reputation of turning around sharp, timely campaigns. Now, they’re targeting Millenial Georgians with ads owning the Biden administration’s move to cancel student loan debt, appropriately wearing swag from his HBCU alma mater, Morehouse College:

College costs freshmen six times more than it did in my day. And I’m not that old! I’m Raphael Warnock. I got the federal government to forgive student debt, because student debt shouldn’t stand between Georgians and their dreams.

Quick facts:

• The top spending Senate candidate on digital ads last week was Raphael Warnock, who dropped $496,988.

• The state with the most expensive Senate race online last week was Georgia, where candidates combined spent $557,608 on digital ads

• Democratic candidates in competitive races spent $1,599,822 on digital ads last week, while Republican candidates spent $223,431.

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Ad of the week: Granite Staters deserve it

Democrats have quite a few policy achievements to run on this fall after a surprisingly productive Congress. Maggie Hassan appears to be the first to run on one of the underappreciated Ws: lowering the cost of hearing aids and making them available over the counter. Also, we want to highlight that while captioning video ads has become a best practice in recent years, we were relieved to see the campaign use closed captions on an ad cut specifically for folks who are hard of hearing. The ad, which targets Granite Staters over 35, promotes a local news spot:

Sen. Maggie Hassan is celebrating the FDA’s decision to soon make hearing aids available over the counter. The senator helped introduced the Over-the-Counter Hearing Aid Act in 2017 and has been pushing the FDA to make this happen. She says it will be a game changer for Granite Staters who have struggled to afford hearing aids: ‘People should be aware that there’s been a monopoly that controls the marketplace for hearing aids. And it’s one of the reasons that hearing aids have been so expensive. So this is really an important step forward.’”

Quick facts:

• The top spending Senate candidate on digital ads last week was Raphael Warnock, who dropped $418,449.

• The state with the most expensive Senate race online last week was Georgia, where candidates combined spent $512,800 on digital ads

• Democratic candidates in competitive races spent $1,549,776 on digital ads last week, while Republican candidates spent $153,593.

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Ad of the week: The home we make

Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto is among the first battleground Senate candidates to run digital ads this fall about clean energy and climate change. Her new ads lead with improving water access, a critical issue as the Colorado River depletes, and in another smart move, primarily target Millenials, for whom climate change is a top issue.

Nevadans have worked hard to make a home here. So I’ve worked with both parties to improve our water access, combat wildfires and flooding, and create thousands of clean energy jobs. Because the home we make is worth protecting.

Quick facts:

• The top spending Senate candidate on digital ads last week was Raphael Warnock, who dropped $328,784.

• The state with the most expensive Senate race online last week was Georgia, where candidates combined spent $395,581 on digital ads

• Democratic candidates in competitive races spent $1,400,106 on digital ads last week, while Republican candidates spent $153,593.

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Ad of the week: Mmmm 😋 crudité!

In April, Mehmet Oz posted a video of himself going to “Wegner’s” to complain about how expensive it is to buy veggies for a “crudité,” which for Oz apparently comprises raw broccoli, raw asparagus, 5 lbs. of raw carrots, salsa, and guacamole. The gaffe-filled video has now resurfaced, reminding us all of how truly out-of-touch Oz is with anyone but the rich and famous, and John Fetterman, true to form, is making sure to remind his supporters of that as well. It’s refreshing to see a campaign embrace and thrive on flexibility and, frankly, fun in their ad program.

Quick facts:

• The top spending Senate candidate on digital ads last week was Raphael Warnock, who dropped $428,042.

• The state with the most expensive Senate race online last week was Georgia, where candidates combined spent $472,244 on digital ads

• Democratic candidates in competitive races spent $1,454,863 on digital ads last week, while Republican candidates spent $121,139.

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Ad of the week: “Abortion is demonic.”

Mark Kelly last week launched his first ads attacking his Republican opponent, the Peter Thiel-backed Blake Masters. He’s launched a strong opening salvo, opting to show voters right away how extreme Masters is by advertising the Republican admitting that he thinks abortion is “a religious sacrifice, I think it’s demonic.” Meanwhile, Masters hasn’t run a single Facebook ad since March.

Quick facts:

• The top spending Senate candidate on digital ads last week was Raphael Warnock, who dropped $327,966.

• The state with the most expensive Senate race online last week was Georgia, where candidates combined spent $375,558 on digital ads

• Democratic candidates in competitive races spent $1,199,539 on digital ads last week, while Republican candidates spent $121,569.

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Ad of the week: Dip those CHIPS!

Democrats achieved a significant legislative feat last week in passing the CHIPS and Science Act, which will, among other things, subsidize semiconductor production in the United States. While it still awaits President Joe Biden’s signature to become law, that hasn’t stopped Raphael Warnock from taking a victory lap in new YouTube ads. The Georgia Democrat has ratcheted up his spending on that platform by nearly $70k, in part with ads like this one. One minor data point on this ad push: the Warnock campaign is targeting different Georgia media markets with these ads, so they may be testing to see how effective it is in the state’s metro TV markets vs its more rural markets.

Quick facts:

• The top spending Senate candidate on digital ads last week was Raphael Warnock, who dropped $271,573.

• The state with the most expensive Senate race online last week was Georgia, where candidates combined spent $295,692 on digital ads

• Democratic candidates in competitive races spent $1,082,798 on digital ads last week, while Republican candidates spent $98,151.

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Ad of the week: Fondos para la policía

Between candidates in two statewide GOP primaries pummeling the state with ads about who has the most draconian immigration and public safety policies, Mark Kelly appears to be pre-empting that issue, particularly among the state’s Latino voters. Last week, his campaign started running an exclusively Spanish-language ad talking about how he supports the state’s police.

Quick facts:

• The top spending Senate candidate on digital ads last week was Raphael Warnock, who dropped $196,058.

• The state with the most expensive Senate race online last week was Georgia, where candidates combined spent $237,823 on digital ads

• Democratic candidates in competitive races spent $833,993 on digital ads last week, while Republican candidates spent $110,843.

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Ad of the week: Hey Mehmet!

You’ve probably heard by now that Mehmet Oz isn’t from Pennsylvania. That’s likely because the John Fetterman has been hammering this point relentlessly across every possible medium, including an airplane banner over South Jersey beaches. This week, they used Cameo to give their GOP opponent a shoutout from one of the Garden State’s other infamous residents: the one and only Nicole “Snooki” Polizzi. Fetterman then turned it right around and advertised it to Pennsylvanians on Facebook and Instagram.

Quick facts:

• The top spending Senate candidate on digital ads last week was Raphael Warnock, who dropped $180,883.

• The state with the most expensive Senate race online last week was Georgia, where candidates combined spent $215,186 on digital ads

• Democratic candidates in competitive races spent $896,842 on digital ads last week, while Republican candidates spent $112,376.

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Ad of the week: I’m not one of these millionaires

With Wisconsin’s primary elections just weeks away, Mandela Barnes appears to be rolling out his ads for the final stretch. The most recent portrays him as a friendly, folksy, hardworking guy who plays cornhole, while also subtly dinging both Ron Johnson and Alex Lasry:

I love this state. Knock on any door, in any county, and you’ll find good-hearted, hard-workin’ folks. People whose businesses I proudly helped as Lieutenant Governor. Hard work needs to be respected again with fair wages and opportunities to get ahead. That’s how my parents opened doors for me. My mom was a teacher and my dad worked third shift. I’m not one of these millionaires. I’ll work just as hard for you as you work for your family.

Quick facts:

• The top spending Senate candidate on digital ads last week was Raphael Warnock, who dropped $252,542.

• The state with the most expensive Senate race online last week was Georgia, where candidates combined spent $280,088 on digital ads

• Democratic candidates in competitive races spent $942,932 on digital ads last week, while Republican candidates spent $98,712.

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Ad of the week: OPEN BORDERS FAKE BLAKE MASTERS

Solar energy executive turned Trump impersonator Jim Lamon is going all-out against the Peter Thiel-backed Blake Masters in a series of new digital ads. Most of them label Masters as an “extreme liberal” for previously advocating for open borders, but in this particular ad, Lamon tries spectacularly hard to seem like the tough guy in the race in his steam-pressed button-up.

Quick facts:

• The top spending Senate candidate on digital ads last week was Val Demings, who dropped $213,028.

• The state with the most expensive Senate race online last week was Georgia, where candidates combined spent $230,528 on digital ads

• Democratic candidates in competitive races spent $842,340 on digital ads last week, while Republican candidates spent $58,929.

The below data is displayed as combined Meta + Google ad spend for the week of 6/26 - 7/2. For breakouts of platform-specific spending numbers by week, click here.

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Ad of the week: Truth About Herschel

With the general election fully in swing in Georgia, it looks like Raphael Warnock is starting to roll out the Herschel Walker oppo dumps. On top of advertising how Walker apparently promoted literal snake oil to fight COVID-19, Warnock’s campaign has now rolled out a microsite detailing all the ways Walker is lying to Georgia voters. Interestingly, these ads are all targeted at the media markets in southern, northwestern, and northeastern Georgia - all very rural regions.

Quick facts:

• The top spending Senate candidate on digital ads last week was Raphael Warnock, who dropped $249,577.

• The state with the most expensive Senate race online last week was Georgia, where candidates combined spent $271,549 on digital ads

• Democratic candidates in competitive races spent $933,397 on digital ads last week, while Republican candidates spent $75,686.

The below data is displayed as combined Meta + Google ad spend for the week of 6/19 - 6/25. For breakouts of platform-specific spending numbers by week, click here.

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Ad of the week: RINO hunting permits

In his quest to return to power, disgraced former governor Eric Greitens is clearly trying to earn the vote of every Missourian who was in DC on January 6th. In…

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