Skip to main content
2020 ElectionsReleases

Ad Spending Ramps Up in Florida, Illinois, Ohio

Photo: Gage Skidmore/Flickr More than $1 Billion Spent in Democratic Nomination Campaign, 30% on Digital     (MIDDLETOWN, CT) March 11, 2020 – Voters in four states with large numbers of delegates (Arizona, Florida, Illinois and Ohio) will cast presidential primary ballots on March 17. Spending on television ads in these states during the past week (between March 4 and 8) was around $6.5 million (Table 1). Sanders spent $2.6 million on ads in these four states, while Biden topped $1.6 million. There was also some advertising from Michael Bloomberg, who dropped out of the race on March 4, and…
2020 ElectionsReleases

$44 Million on Presidential Ads in Iowa

Photo: Rick Wilking/Reuters Self-funded billionaires drive ad spending up 131% over 2016   (MIDDLETOWN, CT) January 29, 2020 – A new analysis from the Wesleyan Media Project shows that over $44 million has been spent on 122,815 broadcast television presidential ads in Iowa, which holds the nation’s first caucus on Monday, February 3 (Table 1). These totals in Iowa represent an 11 percent increase in presidential ad spending over 2016 (which saw $40 million) and a 65 percent increase in airings (74,483 ads aired at this point in 2016). Tom Steyer’s campaign has spent over $11 million on over 37,000…
Wesleyan Media Project
January 29, 2020
2020 ElectionsReleases

Trump, Steyer Talk Impeachment in Ads

Photo: Spencer Platt/Getty Images Groups Mention Impeachment Issue In House Races;Total Ad Spending Approaches $300 Million in Presidential Race   (MIDDLETOWN, CT) December 19, 2019 – A new analysis from the Wesleyan Media Project in partnership with the Center for Responsive Politics shows that impeachment is largely absent from discussion in paid presidential television ads—with two major exceptions (Table 1). Since October 1, Donald Trump has spent over $4.4 million on 4,594 ad airings that discuss impeachment—fully 99.2 percent of his campaign’s airings. (Between the start of the year and October, he aired just 36 ads on broadcast television or…
Wesleyan Media Project
December 19, 2019
2020 ElectionsReleases

TV Ad Volume Way Up Over 2016

Outside Groups Largely Absent   (MIDDLETOWN, CT) November 20, 2019 – A new analysis from the Wesleyan Media Project shows that $20.5 million has been spent on television advertising by candidates in the presidential race since October 20 (Table 1). Making their first ad buys this past month were Elizabeth Warren, Andrew Yang, and Steve Bullock. Warren started advertising on national cable on October 26 and in Iowa on November 4, while both Bullock and Yang started advertising in Iowa in the first week of November. Bernie Sanders and Pete Buttigieg have also ramped up television spending in the past…
Wesleyan Media Project
November 20, 2019