Political Ad Boom Builds With Billions Still To Come.

The political advertising market is entering its most lucrative stretch of the election cycle with spending already running well ahead of previous elections and another $1.5 billion in advertising already reserved through Election Day.

The ad tracking firm AdImpact says $5.75 billion in political advertising had aired through Aug. 31, putting the 2026 cycle 37% ahead of the comparable point in the 2022 midterms. Perhaps more striking for media companies, spending is also running 22% ahead of where the record-setting 2024 presidential cycle stood at the same point. And those numbers come before the period when political advertisers historically spend the most.

AdImpact says more than half (52%) of all political advertising during the 2022 election year occurred after Labor Day. During the 2024 presidential cycle, the post-Labor Day share was even higher at 57%.

For now, the trends look good. Another $1.5 billion is already reserved to run between now and Election Day, with additional buys likely to be placed as campaigns and outside groups react to changing races. That points to a potentially significant fall revenue tailwind for broadcasters as the fourth quarter approaches.

The ramp-up in political spending has been gaining traction for weeks. AdImpact tracked $796.5 million in aired political advertising during August. That was a 63% increase from July. It is also 47% more than aired during August 2022 when the last midterm election was held.

Driving those numbers are more ads on the air. The number of broadcast political ad airings tracked by the firm also jumped 42% from July and was 16% higher than during August 2022. That acceleration is significant for media sellers because political advertising does not build evenly throughout an election year.

AdImpact’s cycle comparison also shows spending moving sharply higher as Election Day approaches, making September and October disproportionately important revenue months. The 2026 cycle has reached $5.75 billion despite being only about two-thirds of the way toward AdImpact's latest $11.6 billion full-cycle forecast. In other words, nearly half of the dollars expected for the entire cycle have yet to materialize.

The future reservations provide a clearer picture of where some of that money is headed.

Congressional contests account for 73% of all political advertising currently reserved through Election Day. Senate races have approximately $591 million booked, based on AdImpact’s election-type breakdown, while House races have about $495 million reserved. Governor races account for roughly $203 million, with another approximately $193 million targeting down-ballot contests.

Those reservations also show how intensely political dollars will be concentrated geographically with the big totals overlapping with where the Senate battleground map’s biggest battles are being waged.

The firm reports Detroit currently has $73.2 million in future advertising reservations, followed by Cleveland at $66.2 million, Portland, ME at $66 million, Atlanta at $65 million, and Cincinnati at $52.4 million. Buckeye broadcasters could emerge the biggest winners as Ohio alone has $244.3 million in future reservations targeting the state.

That concentration could also have implications beyond political advertising. Heavy political demand in battleground markets will tighten available inventory as Election Day approaches, potentially affecting pricing and avails for regular advertisers competing for the same airtime.

The latest figures add weight to the prospect of an unusually strong political advertising finish.

AdImpact recently reported radio had already collected $124 million so far. The new report doesn’t provide an updated radio-specific spending figure or break out how much of the $1.5 billion in reservations is destined for radio.

But the tide is moving in radio’s direction. Political spending is running 37% ahead of the comparable 2022 midterm pace, August spending increased 63% in a single month, broadcast ad volume is climbing, and historically more than half of election-year political spending has occurred after Labor Day.