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September 17, 2020

This week in money-in-politics

Biden, Democratic groups target Latinos with Spanish language ads

In 2016, 62 percent of Latino voters in Florida voted for Hillary Clinton, but this year only 46 percent say they support Democratic nominee Joe Biden, according to a recent NBC News/Marist poll. Although Biden and President Donald Trump were tied overall, the incumbent had a slight lead (50 percent) among Latinos, who make up one-fifth of eligible voters in Florida.

While not all Latinos speak Spanish, Biden has pushed more Spanish language ads this summer, especially in critical swing states such as Florida and Arizona, but the results of last week’s poll suggest that Biden’s investments might not pay off.

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Will Bloomberg’s history of backing winners boost Biden in Florida?

Former New York City mayor and presidential candidate Michael Bloomberg committed to spend at least $100 million to support Democratic nominee Joe Biden in Florida. According to a Sunday announcement, the $100 million will mostly go toward television and digital ads in English and Spanish. It will be spent through Independence USA — Bloomberg’s super PAC — as well as other Democratic groups, and is expected to target the attention of Hispanic voters, a spokeswoman told the New York Times.
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Senate candidates spend record sums on online ads

It isn’t only presidential hopefuls spending big to get their messages out; candidates running for Senate have turned to digital advertising to reel in donors and further the agendas around which their platforms are based. Among congressional candidates, the top five online ad spenders in the 2020 election cycle are Senate candidates in key races — and thanks to online advertising, they’ve raised record amounts of money in this election cycle. The highest spender is Amy McGrath, a moderate challenger up against Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.).
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Tight rematch in Miami-area congressional race draws big money

Despite favoring Hillary Clinton in 2016, Florida’s 27th Congressional District has a history of electing Republicans down-ballot, and the GOP is hoping it turns back to red this fall. Clinton beat Trump by 20 points in the district four years ago, but a recent poll from 1892 Polling showed freshman Rep. Donna Shalala (D-Fla.) trailing Republican nominee Maria Elvira Salazar 43 percent to 46 percent. The poll was sponsored by Salazar and has a margin-of-error of 4.9 percent.
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‘Dark money’ groups pouring millions into 2020 political ads with even less disclosure

“Dark money” groups that keep their donors secret have spent more than $182 million on political ads during the 2020 election cycle, with only a fraction of that spending reported to the Federal Election Commission during the same period.

That’s according to new OpenSecrets research in partnership with the Wesleyan Media Project.

Groups that do not disclose their donors have reported spending $33.3 million to the FEC during the 2020 election cycle, accounting for roughly 5 percent of outside spending when party committees are excluded. But that comparably small amount of direct spending by dark money groups does not mean money flowing into elections from untraceable sources has dwindled, it has just become even more opaque.

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Introducing a new member of the OpenSecrets team: Research Intern Corinne Wolyniec

Corinne is a senior at Swarthmore College majoring in Sociology and Anthropology. Her senior thesis focuses on local governments and voting accessibility. Prior to joining CRP, she interned with disability rights organizations in the Philadelphia area, including the Legal Clinic for the Disabled and a nonprofit advocating for students with disabilities.

OpenSecrets in the News

See our media citations from outlets around the nation this week:

Democratic super PAC expands fight against Iowa GOP Sen. Joni Ernst (CNN)
The Iowa Senate race is widely expected to be the most expensive of all time. Political groups are prepared to pour over $127 million in ads. In 2014, groups spent $92.6 million.
It's getting hard to miss campaign ads in Minnesota (Minnesota Public Radio)
Political parties and outside groups are going all out in key Minnesota contests, deploying hundreds of thousands of dollars or more for hard-hitting television ads.
Washington lobbyists continue to cash in on dispute between Qatar and UAE (Middle East Eye)
The governments of the United Arab Emirates and Qatar have spent $100 million lobbying in Washington since the two countries broke diplomatic ties three years ago.

NBC News
The Associated Press
Reuters
NPR
CBC
Roll Call
Tulsa World
The Florida Courier
Lewiston Sun Journal
The Quad City Times
Montana Free Press
Bloomberg
Vox

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Will Bloomberg’s history of backing winners boost Biden in Florida?

Senate candidates spend record sums on online ads

Tight rematch in Miami-area congressional race draws big money

OpenSecrets in the News

See our media citations from outlets around the nation this week:

Democratic super PAC expands fight against Iowa GOP Sen. Joni Ernst (CNN) The Iowa Senate race is widely expected to be the most expensive of all time. Political groups are prepared to pour over $127 million in ads. In 2014, groups spent $92.6 million.

It's getting hard to miss campaign ads in Minnesota (Minnesota Public Radio) Political parties and outside groups are going all out in key Minnesota contests, deploying hundreds of thousands of dollars or more for hard-hitting television ads.

Washington lobbyists continue to cash in on dispute between Qatar and UAE (Middle East Eye) The governments of the United Arab Emirates and Qatar have spent $100 million lobbying in Washington since the two countries broke diplomatic ties three years ago.

See more here

Democratic super PAC expands fight against Iowa GOP Sen. Joni Ernst (CNN)
The Iowa Senate race is widely expected to be the most expensive of all time. Political groups are prepared to pour over $127 million in ads. In 2014, groups spent $92.6 million.

It's getting hard to miss campaign ads in Minnesota (Minnesota Public Radio)
Political parties and outside groups are going all out in key Minnesota contests, deploying hundreds of thousands of dollars or more for hard-hitting television ads.

Washington lobbyists continue to cash in on dispute between Qatar and UAE (Middle East Eye)
The governments of the United Arab Emirates and Qatar have spent $100 million lobbying in Washington since the two countries broke diplomatic ties three years ago.