New Forecast Sees Political Ad Spending Hitting $10.7 Billion in 2024

Election Ad Campaign Spending

AdImpact said it has increased its forecast for political ad spending in 2024 to $10.7 billion, from an earlier estimate of $10.2 billion.

For broadcast, total spending is expected to be $5.4 billion, up from the original forecast of $5.1 billion

For cable, the total is expected to rise to $1.93 billion from $1.9 billion.

For connected TV, the forecast rises to $1.51 billion from $1.35 billion.

Also Read: 48 Million Watched CNN’s Biden-Trump Debate

Through June 27, year-to-date political ad spending in the 2024 election cycle is outpacing the 2020 election cycle, at $3.05 billion compared to $2.54 billion, AdImpact said.

“This election cycle is on track to be the most expensive on record, projected to have 19% growth over the 2019-20 cycle,” AdImpact said.

Through June 30, AdImpact said it had detected more than 7,400 unique political TV ads, 700 more than 2022 over the same period.

In terms of races, AdImpact projects that $2.68 billion will be spent on the presidential elections, with another $2.15 billion spent on U.S. Senate races, $1.79 billion for candidates running for the House of Representatives and $469 million for gubernatorial races.

Jon Lafayette

Jon has been business editor of Broadcasting+Cable since 2010. He focuses on revenue-generating activities, including advertising and distribution, as well as executive intrigue and merger and acquisition activity. Just about any story is fair game, if a dollar sign can make its way into the article. Before B+C, Jon covered the industry for TVWeek, Cable World, Electronic Media, Advertising Age and The New York Post. A native New Yorker, Jon is hiding in plain sight in the suburbs of Chicago.