In the month of September, Democrats outspent Republicans by nearly two-to-one on advertising for the presidential race, gaining an advantage on battleground airwaves. According to AdImpact data, Democrats spent approximately $292.9 million on ads targeting seven key swing states, including Pennsylvania, Michigan, Wisconsin, Georgia, Arizona, North Carolina, and Nevada. In comparison, Republicans spent about $156.5 million in the same period.
When considering national advertising and spending in other states, the ratio remained consistent, with Democrats spending $361.6 million and Republicans spending $180.9 million. This marked a significant shift from the previous month, where both parties had spent roughly the same amount on advertising.
During August, Democrats had spent around $209.2 million on advertising in the seven battleground states, while Republicans had allocated approximately $206.6 million. The overall spending, including national advertising and other states, showed Democrats with a slightly larger lead at $279.6 million compared to Republicans' $228.1 million.
Notably, in Pennsylvania, a crucial state for both parties in the race to secure 270 electoral votes, Democrats significantly increased their advertising efforts from August to September. In August, both Democrats and Republicans had spent similar amounts on advertising in Pennsylvania. However, in September, Democrats ramped up their spending to $77.1 million, while Republicans spent $42.5 million in the state.
Overall, when factoring in national advertising and spending in other states, the gap widened further, with Democrats spending $696 million compared to Republicans' $438 million. This surge in advertising expenditure has propelled the total presidential ad spending between July 22 and September 30 to surpass $1.1 billion.
