• by Wayne Friedman , October 24, 2024

While local TV stations -- especially  TV news programming -- continues to see the bulk of political ad spend this season, campaigns are also adding messaging and impressions on national TV networks in the last weeks of the Presidential campaign.

Since the beginning of October (through Oct. 23), Democrat Presidential contender Kamala Harris' “Harris For President” campaign has dominated the national TV airwaves versus other national political messaging -- spending an estimated $21.4 million with some 1,570 airings and posting 2.3 billion impressions, according to estimates from EDO Ad EnGage.

Top networks for the campaign were ABC at $5.6 million (with 192 airings and 529.9 million impressions), CBS with $5.4 million (219 airings and 657.4 million impressions) and NBC with $4.7 million (171 airings and 575.4 million impressions).

In addition, the Democrat-focused Future Forward USA Action PAC spent $6.6 million (with 718 airings and 674.8 million impressions) over that same period.

GOP Presidential candidate Donald Trump’s “2024 Presidential Campaign” was far behind the Harris campaign in spending at $5.2 million for the period -- with 148 airings and 352.2 million impressions. 

For the Trump campaign, the top TV networks were Fox Television Network, with $1.6 million (12 airings and 72.2 million impressions); CBS with $1.5 million (8 airings and 79.2 million impressions); and NBC with $1.5 million (6 airings and 46.5 million impressions).

The GOP-focused “Restoration PAC” adds in $2.8 million (36 airings and 133.6 million impressions) for Trump. Its biggest spend on a TV network was with NBC at $1.4 million (6 airings and 43.5 million impressions).

Looking specifically at key nine swing states where it is likely the Presidential election will be decided -- and where heavy local TV advertising continues to be placed -- Democratic-backed political media campaigns have commanded a 58% share of all political impressions, according to Vizio’s Inscape data.

Republican-backed political advertising is well behind the Democrats' advertising with a 40% share of all political impressions in those states.

Total U.S. local TV stations have been estimated to take in a record $5 billion this year, according to a number of projections -- this part of an overall record $10 billion to $11 billion for all media platforms’ political ad spend.