2026 Political Ad Spending Climbs To $934M, Driven Largely by Issue Groups.

Political advertising for the 2026 election cycle has reached roughly $934 million across broadcast, cable, radio, digital, satellite and connected TV platforms, according to newly compiled spending data from AdImpact.

The total reflects a significant increase from the $865 million recorded as of Nov. 5.

The races drawing the highest levels of investment so far include healthcare issue advertising at $94 million, immigration advertising at $68 million, the Texas Senate contest at $57 million and fundraising issue advertising at $30 million. The largest individual advertisers to date are the U.S. Department of Homeland Security ($66 million), One Nation ($27 million), the Lone Star Freedom Project ($18 million) and the American Prosperity Alliance ($17 million).

Teams aligned with pro-healthcare and anti-immigration messaging are currently tied at $66 million each, while groups supporting Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) and Democratic candidates have each spent $44 million. Independent-aligned spending accounts for 41% of the total, followed by Republican spending at 32% and Democratic spending at 26%. Issue groups make up 86% of all advertising, with candidate committees representing the remaining 14%.

Digital platforms represent the largest share of media placement at 35%, followed by connected TV at 22%, cable at 21%, broadcast at 19% and radio at 3%.

Washington, DC, is the top broadcast market with $98 million booked, far outpacing Dallas at $27 million, Los Angeles at $23 million and New York and Houston at $21 million each.

Several campaigns have also faced high levels of negative advertising. Ossoff for Georgia Senate has drawn $5 million in opposition spending, followed by Paxton for Texas Senate at $4.4 million, Bresnahan for Pennsylvania’s 8th Congressional District at $2.7 million, Cornyn for Texas Senate at $2.5 million and Collins for Maine Senate at $2.4 million.