In an unprecedented election marked by soaring ad budgets and fierce competition, Vice President Kamala Harris and her running mate, Tim Walz, spent a staggering $1.4 billion on political advertising in their bid for the White House, according to a report from ad analytics firm AdImpact.
Despite the substantial financial push, the Democratic campaign ultimately fell short, with former President Donald Trump clinching a return to the Oval Office.
The 2024 presidential race saw Democrats outspend Republicans by nearly $460 million, with Harris and her allies allocating approximately $1.37 billion to ads versus the GOP’s $913.9 million.
A substantial portion of the record-breaking $2.29 billion in ad spending went to swing states, including Pennsylvania, North Carolina, Wisconsin, Georgia, Nevada, and Michigan, with Pennsylvania alone receiving $494.3 million, or 22% of the total ad buy.
Democrats notably outspent Republicans by $261.9 million in Pennsylvania, but Trump’s narrow win in Wisconsin ultimately secured him the electoral votes needed to reclaim the presidency.
The campaigns’ ad themes diverged significantly, with Harris focusing on taxation, amounting to 75% of her campaign’s 498,000 ad airings.
Trump, meanwhile, centered his messaging on immigration, airing 237,400 ads, as per reports. The departure of Biden spurred ad spending further, with a post-announcement surge that saw Democratic spending hit $630 million by Labor Day, yet the efforts failed to swing the vote.