Billionaire Mike Bloomberg plans to fund a $15 million ad blitz in two key election battleground states the week leading up to the presidential election, the New York Times reported.
A spokesperson for the former Democratic presidential candidate told the Times on Tuesday that Bloomberg would use his super PAC, Independence USA, to air ads in Texas and Georgia. Bloomberg’s aid, Howard Wolfson, said the former New York City mayor views the battleground states as opportunities to expand the electoral college map, according to NYT.
“We believe that Florida will go down to the wire, and we were looking for additional opportunities to expand the map,” Wolfson said. “Texas and Ohio present the best opportunities to do that, in our view.”
Michael Bloomberg, the billionaire former New York City mayor, is funding a last-minute advertising blitz to bolster Joe Biden in Texas and Ohio after private polling found that President Trump had vulnerabilities in the two red states. https://t.co/PsNjqVWFs5
— The New York Times (@nytimes) October 27, 2020
Wolfson also told the Times that Bloomberg intends to increase ad spending in Florida the week leading to the election. Bloomberg announced in September that he would contribute at least $100 million to Democratic races in the battleground state. (Bloomberg Pledges At Least $100M To Help Biden Win Florida)
Real Clear Politics (RCP) polling averages show President Donald Trump leading Democratic nominee Joe Biden by a slim 0.4% margin in Florida. Polling also indicates tight races in Ohio and Texas. Trump leads Biden by under 1% in Ohio and by 3.2% in Texas, according to RCP averages.
A Democratic presidential nominee has not won the electoral vote in Texas since Jimmy Carter defeated Gerald Ford in 1976. The closest margin of defeat for a Democratic presidential nominee in Texas since 1976 was in 1992 when George H.W. Bush beat Bill Clinton by 3.5%.
Former Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton lost the state by 9% in 2016.