(MIDDLETOWN, CT) October 30, 2026 – Federal advertising in the 2026 general election has featured more discussion of government ethics than any of the last eight election cycles (which extend back to 2012), according to a new analysis by the Wesleyan Media Project. Discussion of campaign finance is also at a record high in U.S. House contests, and second only to 2020 in U.S. Senate elections. Although discussion of both issue topics is coming from both parties, pro-Democratic ads are much more likely to feature both topics. Table 1 and Figure 1 show the proportion of ad airings that mention…

(MIDDLETOWN, CT) October 29, 2026 – Ad spending in U.S. Senate races continues to rise in some states but is falling in others, according to a new analysis from the Wesleyan Media Project.  Table 1 shows the volume of ad spending in each of the top Senate races in both early October (September 28 to October 11) and late October (October 12 to 25).  Overall spending in most states increased in the recent two-week period but did decline in Texas, Georgia and North Carolina.  The latter two are states in which pro-Republican spending has dropped considerably.  Indeed, 93 percent of…

(MIDDLETOWN, CT) October 15, 2026 – For several weeks, pro-Republican advertisers have outspent their Democratic rivals in U.S. Senate races, but that gap narrowed in our most recent analysis.  Over the past two weeks (September 28 to October 11), Republican candidates benefitted from $267 million in ad spending compared to $196 million in spending on behalf Democratic candidates, a gap of $70 million.  That gap, however, is smaller than the spending gap ($113 million) between the parties from the prior two-week period between September 14 to September 27. “Republican cash has been dominating the most competitive Senate races since Labor…

Cost of Living and Taxes Top Issue Mentions in Congressional Spots(MIDDLETOWN, CT) October 1, 2026 – Spending on ads in U.S. Senate races approached $500 million in the period between September 8 (the day after Labor Day) and September 27.  Of that, over $112 million was devoted to ads in the Texas Senate race, as Table 1 shows.  Notably, the Republican candidate, Ken Paxton, spent almost no money on ads (though he did coordinate on some spending with the Republican Party—about $800,000), while outside groups made up 82.5 percent of the ad spending in that race during this time frame. …