A super PAC supporting Pennsylvania U.S. Senate nominee Dave McCormick reserved $30 million in television advertising following the release of polling showing the Republican gaining ground on Senator Bob Casey (D-PA).
The New York Times confirmed the advertising reservation on Thursday. The newspaper reported that a pro-McCormick Keystone Renewal PAC spokesman stated it “is all in to elect David McCormick to the U.S. Senate” and described Casey as aligned with President Joe Biden’s “left-wing agenda.”
The group’s $30 million reservation of television ad space comes as the Real Clear Polling aggregate of surveys shows Casey ahead by 4.8 percent among Pennsylvania voters but reveals a recent poll showed McCormick just 2 percent behind the incumbent.
Casey’s campaign spent just over $11.9 million and had about $11.8 million on hand in April, while McCormick had spent about $4.6 million and had about $6.4 million on hand at the same time.
Outside entities, including super PACs, had spent about $5.7 million in support of McCormick in April and roughly $942,000 opposing McCormick, meaning the advertising from the Keystone Renewal PAC could eclipse existing advertising spent on the U.S. Senate race in the commonwealth.
The Keystone Renewal PAC received more than $21 million in the current political cycle as of April 3, and its largest donors are hedge fund managers Ken Griffin and Paul Singer, who donated $10 million and $2 million, respectively. It had about $21.5 million on hand in its latest report.
Griffin and Singer have recently aided the primary campaigns of candidates opposing Republican incumbents who voted to oust former Representative Kevin McCarthy from his role as Speaker of the House, including Representative Bob Good (R-VA-05). Good’s challenger was also recently endorsed by former President Donald Trump.
The overlap between Trump’s interests and those of Griffin and Singer comes after the hedge fund managers backed Trump’s primary opponents in 2016 and then were hesitant to support the former president when he became the Republican nominee.
Keystone Renewal PAC’s ad reservation comes as spending for the presidential election in Pennsylvania has already passed $20 million. President Joe Biden and his allies have spent $10.8 million in the state so far, compared to $10.5 million from Trump and his allies.
While most surveys show McCormick narrowly behind Casey, polls similarly show Trump narrowly beating Biden in Pennsylvania. The former president now enjoys a 2.3 percent lead in the Real Clear Polling aggregate.
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Tom Pappert is the lead reporter for The Tennessee Star, and also reports for The Pennsylvania Daily Star and The Arizona Sun Times. Follow Tom on X/Twitter. Email tips to [email protected].
Photo “Dave McCormick” by Dave McCormick. Photo “Bob Casey” by Bob Casey.Â
