IN FOCUS - Aug. 30, 2024
The tsunami about to hit Arizona won’t be red or blue. It’s green.
Arizona ranks 3rd nationally in terms of our share of the cumulative $1.8 billion worth of broadcast time already reserved for political ads between now and Election Day.
That’s great news for TV station owners. For the rest of us? Ugh.
The ad onslaught is no surprise. Arizona has emerged as one of the nation’s tightest battlegrounds, typified by its largest media market: metro Phoenix. Add to the mix a razor-thin race for the White House, pricey U.S. Senate clash, two swing congressional contests, and high-profile ballot measures on abortion (statewide) and transportation (Maricopa County). The Phoenix TV market trails only Philadelphia and Las Vegas in TV reservations.
Of the $400 million worth of broadcast time reserved nationwide for the Harris-Trump race, roughly 10% has been placed in Arizona.
Notably, the largest spender in the Race for the White House is pro-Harris Super PAC FF PAC, which has $140 million worth of time reserved across all seven battleground states. As an IE, FF PAC does not receive discounted candidate ad rates and must spend three times per every candidate dollar for the same time.
In the Senate race, Rep. Gallego and his allies have more than doubled the broadcast reservations made by Team Lake and aligned groups. Rep. Gallego has already booked $18 million worth of time, the most of any Senate candidate in the country.
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