Democrats go all-in on abortion in final ad blitz, GOP focuses on economy

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Republicans are laser-focused on the economy in ads blanketing the airwaves before the midterm elections, while Democrats are sounding the alarm on abortion access as early voting gets underway in many states.

In dozens of races that will determine who controls the House next year, the advertisements provide a snapshot of each party’s midterm closing arguments. Republicans are looking to take advantage of inflation amid high grocery and gas prices under President Joe Biden, while Democrats are hoping to ride a wave of voter enthusiasm prompted by the Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wade in June.

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This messaging battle is playing out in Virginia’s 7th Congressional District, where the campaign of Rep. Abigail Spanberger, a centrist Democrat, accused Republican challenger Yesli Vega of being “too extreme for Virginia,” citing past comments she’s made on abortion, as well as the claim that she supports a “total nationwide ban” with no exceptions.

When asked about her stance, the Vega campaign told NBC 4 that she supports exceptions for rape, incest, and the life of the mother and believes the “Supreme Court correctly ruled in their decision to leave this issue up to the states and the people.”
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“As a working parent, I know the struggles families face. Groceries, gas — everything costs more, and politicians in Congress ignore the problem. My parents fled El Salvador to give me a better life, but today, the American dream is unaffordable,” she says in the ad.
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Commercials in races from Indiana to Nevada hit the same notes. In Indiana’s 1st District, vulnerable Democratic incumbent Rep. Frank Mrvan has an attack ad against Republican Jennifer-Ruth Green that brings up her saying she is “100% pro-life” and claims that she is against abortion with no exceptions. In Nevada, incumbent Rep. Susie Lee (D) slammed her opponent, April Becker, with two ads about her abortion stance. Becker has made easing inflation part of her pitch to voters.

GOP candidates across the country appear to be softening their stances on abortion in the face of the onslaught of Democratic attack ads. Meanwhile, Republicans argue Democrats are running on abortion to avoid their record on the economy.

“Democrats cannot run on fixing the economy because then they would have to admit they broke it. They are making a bet that misleading ads will make voters forget about their struggles to put food on the table or pay the bills,” said Cassie Smedile, executive director of America Rising PAC.

Democrats’ focus on abortion extends to advertising on social media, according to Facebook statistics analyzed by Axios. Another analysis, this one by Politico, “found that Democratic candidates, party committees and allied super PACs have spent nearly $18 million to air more than 100 abortion-centered broadcast TV ads in battleground states through the end of September.”

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Axios also found that Republicans have mostly stopped focusing on Biden specifically in their advertisements, while Democrats have distanced themselves from the president as well. Former President Donald Trump did feature significantly in advertising from both sides.

Republicans need a net gain of only five seats in the House in order to take the majority on Nov. 8.

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