Democrats are drastically outspending Republicans in advertising efforts to regain a Long Island congressional seat that former New York Republican Rep. George Santos previously held, Politico reported on Thursday.
New York’s third congressional district’s special election will take place on Feb. 13, and Republicans currently have only dedicated $3.3 million on ads while Democrats have spent $8.9 million, Politico reported, citing AdImpact data. Former Democratic Rep. Tom Suozzi is running against Republican Nassau County legislator Mazi Melesa Pilip, who previously served in the Israel Defense Forces, according to her campaign website. (RELATED: Speaker Mike Johnson Says He ‘Couldn’t Block’ George Santos Expulsion)
I support strong border security. And anything else you might hear…is garbage.
📺Watch: “Border,” my 4th TV ad that sets the record straight on my long-standing bipartisan record on immigration. pic.twitter.com/MRRnvAwXr1
— Tom Suozzi (@Tom_Suozzi) January 24, 2024
Suozzi previously held the seat, assuming office in 2017 and leaving in 2023, and he has better name recognition in the district, according to Politico. Democrats’ attack ads on Pilip are characterizing her as representing the “MAGA” movement.
The House Majority PAC and the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) have spent over $3.7 million each, Politico reported, citing AdImpact data.
“House Republicans appear too busy risking a government shutdown, launching sham impeachments and ripping away women’s reproductive freedom to send help,” DCCC spokesperson Ellie Dougherty told Politico.
Suozzi’s campaign has also spent more than $1 million on its own, according to Politico.
The National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) invested over $800,000 on ads starting in the middle January for Pilip, according to Politico. The Republican party’s Congressional Leadership Fund spent $1.5 million on an ad buy for Pilip that will air until the end of January.
Republicans’ ads have targeted Suozzi for his immigration record, and one accuses him of helping to “create our immigration crisis.” Immigration is an important issue for the voters in the district.
Santos was expelled from Congress in December after a House Ethics Committee report found that he “sought to fraudulently exploit every aspect of his House candidacy for his own personal financial profit.”
The Pilip campaign, Suozzi campaign and NRCC did not immediately respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s request for comment.
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