http://www.politico.com/story/2015/07/hillary-clinton-first-ad-buy-2016-120295.htmlHillary Clinton is reserving time for her first major ad buys of the 2016 campaign – shelling out $7.7 million for TV spots in Iowa and New Hampshire for the fall, a campaign official told POLITICO.
The ad buys would allow Clinton to go on the air as early as the first week in November through Election Day in each State – Feb. 1 for the Iowa caucuses, Feb. 9 for the New Hampshire primary.
It’s possible Clinton could buy additional time in either state sooner, the official emphasized, but she wanted to lock down the dates to counter the expected avalanche of ads bought by GOP candidates and their related super PACs.
And reserving time doesn’t necessarily mean Clinton will use it: If the campaign decides to pull out, officials can reallocate the money elsewhere.
“It’s smart to do now,” the officials said.
In Iowa, the campaign is spending $3.6 million to reserve space in eight media markets statewide; in New Hampshire, they are buying several slots with a high percentage of the cash going to the expensive Manchester/Boston market in the southern part of the state, and neighboring Burlington, Vt.
Clinton raised $45 million for the Democratic primary as of June 30, and the Brooklyn-based campaign burned through $18.7 million during its first quarter, much of the cash going to polling, salaries and ramping up operations in early primary states.
Thus far, Clinton’s promotional presence has come in the form of several web videos, emphasizing her connection with grassroots voters and highlighting her support of gay marriage, income equality and immigration rights. Clinton’s top ad maker is Jim Margolis, who cut well-regarded spots for the Obama campaign, and the campaign has explored a variety of ad and outreach efforts for Spanish-language voters.
The former secretary of state still enjoys a commanding lead in national polls matching her against Democratic opponents Bernie Sanders and Martin O’Malley, but that lead has been slipping steadily in the past few months as Sanders gains traction with the progressive wing of the party looking for an alternative to Clinton. In the Monmouth University national poll, Clinton’s percentage of support has slipped from 57 percent last month to 51 percent now among registered Democrats, while Sanders’ support has risen from 12 to 17 percent since June.
If the past is any guide, Clinton is likely to use her first ad spots to emphasize her positives.
Despite her repeated assertions that she intends to focus entirely on the primary fight, especially in Iowa, which she lost in decisive fashion to Barack Obama in 2008, Clinton has an eye on Republicans, not just Bernie Sanders. She is likely to be outspent by conservative independent expenditure groups who see their role as paid-media artillery – softening up her campaign with ad bombs intended to degrade her image no matter who the eventually GOP nominee is
“Republicans are out-raising us 4-to-1,” Clinton campaign chairman John Podesta wrote in an email to supporters earlier this week. “If we win the Democratic nomination for president and this pace keeps up, we are in for a ferocious onslaught of dark money, regardless of who the nominee is on the other side.
Brad Dayspring @BDayspring 4h4 hours ago
Nothing to see here, please disperse! ---> Clinton going up with ad buy a full 4 months earlier than planned
http://www.politico.com/story/2015/07/hillary-clinton-first-ad-buy-2016-120295.html …
