NEW YORK (AP) — Just days after taking office as the Democratic Party’s presumptive presidential nominee, Kamala Harris is already facing a wave of Republican-backed attack ads questioning her character, her progressive record and her knowledge of President Joe Biden’s decline.
But for now, at least, Democrats haven’t entered the summer ad battle. And unlike most of the year, Republicans suddenly dominate the airways.
In total, Trump and his allies spent 25 times more on television and radio ads than Harris’ team between Monday, the day after Biden resigned, and the end of August – more than $68 million for Republicans, compared to just $2.6 million for Democrats, according to an AP analysis of data compiled by media monitoring firm AdImpact.
The stunning discrepancy reflects actual spending for this week and reservations for subsequent weeks, which will almost certainly change in the coming days. But for now, the numbers highlight a risky imbalance for Democrats at the very moment when millions of voters are reshaping their opinions of the vice president who has spent much of the past four years in Biden’s shadow.
Some of Harris’ allies are already raising the alarm.
“Public opinion is like cement. First it’s soft and then it hardens,” said Sarah Longwell, co-founder of Republican Voters Against Trump. “The next three weeks are critical. It has to define itself before Trump defines it.”
To be sure, Harris only received Biden’s endorsement on Sunday. And in the days since, friends and foes agree that she has benefited from a flood of so-called “earned” media coverage, most of it positive. Trump pollster Tony Fabrizio described it as “Harris’ honeymoon” in a memo on Tuesday predicting a significant surge in poll numbers for the Democratic vice president.
When asked about the differences in advertising, Harris spokesman Kevin Munoz said the vice president will “aggressively advance her position, using a campaign infrastructure designed to win close elections.”
“In just 24 hours, Kamala Harris has put abortion rights at the center of voters’ concerns, broken fundraising records and driven Donald Trump to a manic and public breakdown – because he knows she is best equipped to lead the case against a convicted felon like himself,” he said.
Harris’ team has the money to launch a major advertising campaign at any time.
Her campaign raised an incredible $100 million between Sunday afternoon and Monday evening alone. And allies, led by the super PAC Future Forward, received $150 million in pledges in the first 24 hours after Biden dropped out of the race.
“Of course advertising is important and will become more important, but it is not the only factor,” said Democratic strategist Josh Schwerin. “With Harris as the likely nominee, she is consistently receiving overwhelmingly positive coverage. … You always have to consider the context of the entire media ecosystem.”
Still, some of the Harris attack ads may be starting to shape the narrative.
Biden’s allies privately expressed concerns about a fresh ad by Republican Senate candidate Dave McCormick of Pennsylvania that calls Harris the “most liberal candidate ever.” The ad highlights her progressive positions on immigration, policing, energy and health care. It ends with audio of Harris’ deafening laughter, which is often a focus of Republicans.
Trump’s campaign has had little to say on television since he was announced as his party’s likely presidential nominee in the spring. The delay in ad spending reflected in part the former president’s financial woes after an steep primary and staggering legal fees. But backed by allied super PACs running tens of millions of dollars in ads this summer, Trump’s campaign can also afford to wait until more voters are paying attention in the fall to pour money into advertising.
The pro-Trump super PAC Preserve America, backed by casino magnate Miriam Adelson, has reserved $45 million in advertising revenue through the end of August. MAGA Inc. has booked another $23 million.
The Democrats, meanwhile, have just halted their advertising spending after spending enormous sums to support Biden in the weeks and months leading up to his exit.
In total, Biden’s campaign spent more than $138 million on advertising between Jan. 1 of this year and Sunday, when he announced his resignation. While much of the advertising attacked Trump, the ads also featured Biden, who is no longer running and is largely seen as a political liability to Harris.
It is only a matter of time, perhaps even days, before Harris and her allies intensify their advertising plans.
While AdImpact found only about $2.6 million worth of ad reservations for Democratic-backed ads by the end of August, the pro-Biden super PAC Future Forward plans to begin rolling out a $129 million advertising campaign in September.
But right now, voters only see presidential ads criticizing Harris.
One of them, a MAGA Inc. employee, blames the vice president for “an invasion at the border, rampant inflation” and the death of the American dream.
“Kamala knew Joe couldn’t do the job, so she did it,” the narrator says in the ad, which aired Sunday in Pennsylvania, Georgia and Arizona. “You made this mess. You – no, Kamala – are responsible for this failed record.”
