Look for ads starting Sunday that either attack U.S. Rep. Cory Gardner or laud U.S. Sen. Mark Udall — paid for by the Senate Majority PAC.
At least two ad buys totaling $112,000 were reported by two Denver TV stations late Thursday, just days after Americans for Prosperity began running ads against Udall, a Democrat. Gardner is Udall’s likely GOP opponent in the Nov. 4 election.
On KUSA Channel 9, 47 spots will air mostly on news shows but also on Ellen and the Tonight Show between Sunday and March 31, according to the contract with the station.
On KMGH Channel 7, 28 spots will air mostly on news shows. But one 30-second spot will air on Dancing With the Stars on March 31 at a cost of $7,000 — 18 percent of the station’s $38,650 contract.
The Senate Majority PAC is a super PAC created to raise and spend unlimited amounts of money to support Democratic candidates and oppose Republicans. It aims to counter conservative super PACs such as Americans for Prosperity and Karl Rove’s American Crossroads. The super PACs are forbidden by law to coordinate with candidates or political parties.
The Democratic group hasn’t posted any ads on its YouTube channel or announced the Colorado buy on its website as of this writing. (See the ad now posted on the web and included below.)
It’s likely that the Senate Majority PAC is buying ads at other Denver channels and possibly in Colorado Springs, where the AFP ads are running for two weeks. AFP reportedly is spending $970,000 on the current buy, which attacks Udall on the Affordable Care Act.
In 2010, outside groups spent nearly $30 million in the U.S. Senate race in which Democratic Sen. Michael Bennet narrowly defeated Republican Ken Buck.
