PAC adds $24M to fall TV ad

House Dem super PAC adds $24M to fall TV ad buys

The new reservations will also target three additional GOP incumbents in Iowa and Wisconsin

Ally Mutnick

House Democrats’ largest super PAC is adding to its already massive fall ad campaign, including targeting three new Republican incumbents as it tries to capitalize on a surge of enthusiasm surrounding Vice President Kamala Harris’ rise.

House Majority PAC is adding $24 million to its initial $186 million in TV and digital reservations in April, according to plans shared first with POLITICO. Most of that new money will bolster the original buy.

But the group, which has close ties to House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, has also identified three new offensive targets:

• Iowa’s 1st District: HMP is reserving $350,000 worth of ads to boost Democrat Christina Bohannan in a southeast Iowa seat held by Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks. 
• Wisconsin’s 1st District: The super PAC is booking $725,000 in Milwaukee, where former Democratic Rep. Peter Barca is challenging Rep. Bryan Steil.
• Wisconsin’s 3rd District: The group is placing nearly $4 million across three markets in western Wisconsin, where Democrats hope to unseat GOP Rep. Derrick Van Orden.

The decision to go after three additional Republicans is a sign of renewed Democratic confidence after a period of deep malaise.

Democrats need to flip only a handful of seats to retake the House, and they have been basking in a groundswell of optimism and grassroots fundraising after President Joe Biden’s decision to step aside. Democrats had for months feared that Biden would impede their ability to win control of Congress. And after Biden’s flailing debate performance they spent weeks panicking he would tank their chances entirely. Those concerns are now subsiding.

“Over the last several weeks, House Democrats have seen an unprecedented level of support with renewed excitement and momentum,” House Majority PAC President Mike Smith said in a statement. “Our additional reservations are not only expanding the battleground, but also doubling down on offense.”

In Minneapolis, the group is reserving $1.7 million to help Democratic Rep. Angie Craig, who was the first battleground Democrat to call for Biden to bow out of the race. That’s an earmarked donation from a group of donors who sought to reward her for doing so.

The rest of the reservations will re-up existing ones placed in the spring. That includes more than $3 million more in the Los Angeles media market, where Democrats are now dropping a whopping $22.4 million to target GOP-held seats; $6.3 million more in the Philadelphia area, where the party is protecting Rep. Susan Wild and targeting Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick; and $2.2 million more in Flint, Michigan, where Democratic Rep. Dan Kildee is retiring.

On offense, the additional money will up the pressure on Reps. Marc Molinaro (R-N.Y.), Jen Kiggans (R-Va.), David Schweikert (R-Ariz.), Juan Ciscomani (R-Ariz.) Ryan Zinke (R-Mont.) and John Duarte (R-Calif.).

And as HMP looks to defend vulnerable Democrats, the additional money will bolster Reps. Don Davis (D-N.C.), Matt Cartwright (D-Pa.), Emilia Sykes (D-Ohio), Yadira Caraveo (D-Colo.); Jared Golden (D-Maine) and Marcy Kaptur (D-Ohio). Additional money is also helping Democrat Curtis Hertel Jr., who is running for an open seat in Michigan.