Democrats have poured more than $163 million into television advertising that mentions President Donald Trump since Sept. 1, according to an Associated Press analysis of AdImpact data.
The Trump-referencing ads have aired nearly 180,000 times across broadcast, cable and streaming platforms.
By contrast, Republicans have spent an estimated $11 million on ads mentioning Trump, which have aired about 16,000 times.
Economic Messaging Drives Democratic Strategy
Democratic campaigns have largely tied Republican candidates to Trump on economic issues, including tariffs and the Iran war, which the ads blame for increasing costs.
In Georgia, Sen. Jon Ossoff's reelection campaign has spent nearly $3 million on a Trump-focused advertisement targeting Republican Rep.
Mike Collins.
The Ossoff campaign ad says Collins voted for Trump's war in Iran, sending gas prices through the roof, and for Trump's tariffs, sending grocery prices soaring.
It also claims Collins voted with Trump to double health insurance premiums for more than a million Georgians.
Republican National Committee spokesperson Natalie Baldassarre said the Democratic strategy reflects a lack of policy priorities.
Baldassarre said Democrats are "lighting money on fire" talking about Trump because they have no agenda other than investigation, obstruction and impeachment.
She described Trump Derangement Syndrome as "a $160 million way of saying you have nothing to offer to the American people."
In Pennsylvania's closely contested 1st Congressional District, Democratic advertising has also centered on Trump.
The House Majority PAC is supporting Democrat Bob Harvie against Republican Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick.
An advertisement opens with a woman describing her family's financial strain as "barely getting by" before criticizing Fitzpatrick.
The woman says Fitzpatrick used to be independent but now seems to be in lockstep with Donald Trump, adding that it really bothers her.
The ad then directly attacks Fitzpatrick's relationship with the president, saying "Congressman Fitzpatrick is not for us anymore."
According to AdImpact data, all Democratic ads aired in the district since Sept.
1 have mentioned Trump, even though Fitzpatrick opposed Trump's tariffs and opposed giving the president authority to wage war against Iran without congressional approval.
The four Trump-focused ads aired a combined 2,000 times during that period, according to AdImpact.
Harvie, a county commissioner and former social studies teacher, is challenging Fitzpatrick.
House Majority PAC spokesperson Katarina Flicker said the messaging reflects voters' concerns about prices and political accountability.
Flicker said every single poll and focus group shows affordability to be voters' number one issue, and they specifically point to corrupt politicians as being responsible for driving up prices.
Across dozens of issue categories tracked by AdImpact, Trump ranked as Democrats' fourth most frequently mentioned issue in House and Senate races during the final stretch.
Healthcare, taxes and accusations that opponents are beholden to special interests ranked higher.
For Republicans, Trump-related advertising ranked 33rd in the same races, while taxes and crime were their leading issues, according to the analysis.
Idaho Republican Sen. Jim Risch used Trump as part of his tax-cut message.
Risch said he fought alongside President Trump to pass the biggest tax cuts for working families in American history.
Overall, Democrats have spent or reserved $1.8 billion for advertising across federal, state and local elections since Sept.
1, while Republicans have spent or reserved $2.2 billion nationwide, according to the Associated Press analysis.
Republican strategist Alex Conant said Democrats are relying on Trump to drive turnout among their supporters.
Conant said Democrats want this election to be a referendum on Trump and want to equate a vote for a Republican candidate to a vote for Trump.
Conant said Republicans are using a broader mix of messages in the campaign.
He said Republicans have a ton of money and are throwing every kind of message on the wall to see what sticks, adding there is not a cookie-cutter Republican ad this year.
Conant said the Democratic ads are pretty obvious by comparison.
