A super PAC run by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell’s allies reserved $40 million in fall television ads for five states, the Senate Leadership Fund announced Tuesday.
The group will spend $15.8 million on New Hampshire in concert with another super PAC, Granite State Solutions. Another $22.8 million will be spread across Missouri, Nevada, Ohio and Pennsylvania.
“We set out this election cycle with one paramount goal: keeping the Senate in Republican hands,” said Steven Law, president of the Senate Leadership fund and former McConnell chief of staff, in a statement. “We are making good progress toward that goal, and this investment is another big step in that direction.”
Where the McConnell-aligned super PAC decides to spend and how much it’s placing in individual states may reveal the states it’s most concerned about losing in November. More than half of the $40 million will be directed toward New Hampshire and Ohio, where incumbent Republicans face tough re-election campaigns.
The New Hampshire race pits incumbent Republican Sen. Kelly Ayotte against Maggie Hassan, the Granite State’s Democratic governor. The Senate Leadership Fund will spend more than $8 million in Ohio, where incumbent GOP Sen. Rob Portman will square off against Ted Strickland, the state’s last Democratic governor.
The Senate Leadership Fund also has plans to make more ad buys in other states soon, including in Florida to boost incumbent GOP Sen. Marco Rubio.
