Team,

We wanted to make sure you saw Elissa’s recent note on the cost of TV advertisements. 

We’ve included it below so you can take a look, but essentially the race for Michigan’s new 7th district is the most expensive in the entire country. The best way we have to combat the millions of dollars spent and reserved against Elissa is by running our own ads to set the record straight – but that’s not cheap. In fact, it’s three times more expensive to run ads in the Lansing area than it was in 2020.

We weren’t expecting the cost of advertising to skyrocket, and in one of the most competitive House races in the country, staying up on TV is essential to our path to victory. Check out Elissa’s full email below, and please dig deep to help us continue to advertise for the next 10 days.

Team,

We’ve known all year that I’m running in one of the country’s most competitive House races — it’s a new district, filled with tens of thousands of new voters to meet, and only voted for President Biden by less than a percentage point. To that end, we knew we’d have to communicate early: my first TV ad aired on July 5, the earliest I’ve ever gone up on TV. We’ve released 9 ads since across our three media markets, Detroit, Lansing, and Flint, which you can watch here.

But in the last few weeks, these critical TV ads have gotten more expensive than we ever could have fathomed, even in a race this competitive.

The reach of a TV ad is measured in gross ratings points: ads need to reach about 1200-1500 points to really make a mark. And when we wrote our initial television budget, we knew based on 2018 and 2020’s races that the cost per point in our markets would go up exponentially — we figured, based on past races, that Detroit could get as high as $440 per point, and Lansing could go up to $150 per point. 

2022 has been an election year like any other. Not only do we have competitive statewide and Congressional races, but *three* ballot initiatives fighting for time on the airwaves. Ad pricing is all supply and demand. The more demand there is for air time, the more ads cost. 

So in Lansing? Our budget has nearly doubled — in the final week, it’s looking like we could pay nearly $300 per point. And in Detroit, which covers some of the most critical independent voters in our district? We’re being charged closer to $660 per point.

This is the most competitive House race in Michigan and one of the most competitive House races in the country — and the results are going to be close. Our path to victory requires staying on TV in the same rate we have been. 

I’m asking if you’ll chip in today to help us maintain our television spending in our district: it’s expensive, but if we can stay on TV, we’ve got a shot to win.