There's a law that says candidates have to be charged the lowest rate available for ads they run within 60 days of the election. In the past, that has made ad costs fairly predictable in smaller media markets. It also means candidates get a better deal than Super PACs
-
Show this thread
-
This year, though, what has happened is some out of the way places have seen unreal amounts of fundraising, due in large part to the death of Justice Ginsburg. The Senate candidate in Montana has spent over $60 per registered voter. The one in Maine has raised over $76 per voter
1 reply 5 retweets 13 likesShow this thread -
On top of that, these competitive races have brought unprecedented amounts of outside money into competitive states. This money is also being spent on ads, which drives the costs higher—not by a little, but by a factor of five or ten or more.
1 reply 2 retweets 10 likesShow this thread -
The candidate is still guaranteed the lowest rate, but that rate is pegged to the market price, which can go up without limit. So when someone like Bloomberg comes in to drop $100 million on ads in Florida, what he is also doing is defunding every campaign in that media market
1 reply 7 retweets 29 likesShow this thread -
This is also happening in a pandemic year, when candidates have to lean especially hard on digital, radio, and TV ads in lieu of other strategies for turning out voters. The more money the marquee races get, the less buying power there is further down the ballot
1 reply 3 retweets 13 likesShow this thread -
Because post-Ginsburg political giving has been so concentrated, it's driving an internecine bidding war that just captures value for the media companies. And campaign finance laws make it impossible to redistribute the money in more useful ways across campaigns
1 reply 5 retweets 21 likesShow this thread -
Two weeks ago I saw huge fundraising numbers for the campaigns I fundraise for on the Great Slate, and thought we were all set. But it turns out no one can even cover the costs of the pre-election ad space they reserved, since it's gone up 5x-10x in price.
1 reply 6 retweets 24 likesShow this thread -
The ads are good! They're good in part because your generous support made it possible to run a real campaign in places that have traditionally been ignored, and where we now have a real chance to win. Check out this one from Alyse Galvinhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=meqHju0bFFg …
1 reply 3 retweets 21 likesShow this thread -
The problem is, we have to get them in front of people this week, and that takes more money. Right now I'm funneling all I can to ME-2, Alaska, and Iowa, where I think it has the most impact. If you can still help, please dig deep and get us over the linehttps://secure.actblue.com/donate/great_slate …
16 replies 15 retweets 35 likesShow this thread -
Replying to @Pinboard
Tossed in another $400 because I don't get a vacation until the pandemic is over.
2 replies 2 retweets 5 likes
Loading seems to be taking a while.
Twitter may be over capacity or experiencing a momentary hiccup. Try again or visit Twitter Status for more information.