Impact2020: October 9, 2020
In today’s Impact2020 briefing 25 days out from Election Day, we take a look at why Joe Biden is spending so much more on radio ads than President Donald Trump, the latest presidential and congressional debate controversies, and two important court rulings in Florida and Wisconsin.
On the Ground
Outspending more than 50-to-1
Joe Biden is increasingly leaning on radio to try to siphon voters away from President Donald Trump in the final stretch of the race, McClatchy’s Adam Wollner reports.
“The Biden campaign has spent nearly $15 million on radio ads that have aired in all 50 states since the beginning of September … That’s roughly 56 times as much as Trump’s campaign, which has dedicated less than $270,000 to the radio airwaves across seven states over the same time period,” Wollner writes.
In addition to cutting into Trump’s base of rural, senior and Christian voters, Biden’s ads also aim to boost turnout among Black and Latino voters. Even though fewer Americans are listening to traditional radio programming — especially as many are no longer commuting daily due to the coronavirus pandemic — the Biden campaign sees radio ads as a cost-effective way to target narrower slices of the electorate with more tailored messages.
“Radio affords us the opportunity where you can get into a specific audience and have more meaningful and relevant communication with them,” said Biden’s director of paid media, Patrick Bonsignore.
The bulk of Biden’s radio ad budget is concentrated in five swing states: Florida, Pennsylvania, Michigan, North Carolina and Arizona, according to Advertising Analytics. The campaign is spending the most in Florida at $4.3 million.
Increasingly unlikely
While the presidential debate set to happen in Miami on Oct. 15 isn’t officially canceled, the Miami Herald’s David Smiley and Douglas Hanks report that it’s increasingly unlikely to happen.
After the Commission on Presidential Debates changed the format to a virtual debate and Trump balked at the change, the Miami debate, as well as another scheduled for Oct. 22 in Nashville, Tenn., remain in flux.
While Trump’s campaign is arguing that both debates should be pushed back one week, Biden committed to an Oct. 15 town hall in Philadelphia hosted by ABC, and his campaign indicated that the former vice president would not agree to a later debate, Smiley and Hanks write.
Frank Fahrenkopf Jr., co-chairman of the Commission on Presidential Debates, said: “We haven’t heard back yet from the Trump campaign as for exactly what they’re going to do, although I did talk to someone from the Biden campaign today and they said they definitely will be in Nashville on the 22nd.”
During a campaign stop in North Carolina on behalf of his father, Eric Trump said that a virtual debate would allow Biden to cheat, Tim Funk reports for the Charlotte Observer.
Another debate threatened
South Carolina Democrat Jaime Harrison is threatening to pull out of a scheduled debate today if Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham doesn’t take a COVID-19 test, Joseph Bustos reports for The State.
Harrison wants Graham to be tested because the senator was in the same room with Utah Sen. Mike Lee, who has tested positive for a coronavirus, on Oct. 1. Bustos notes that “Graham and Lee were seated three seats apart at a Judiciary Committee hearing not wearing masks, but they were in a large room and senators were spread out in order to socially distance.”
Brian Monahan, the congressional attending physician, wrote a letter saying that Graham did not meet the criteria of being a “close contact” during the hearing, and did not need to self-quarantine or be tested for coronavirus, Bustos writes.
While Harrison has said he and debate panelists have agreed to take COVID-19 tests prior to the 7 p.m. broadcast, Graham has said a test is not necessary.
Harrison and Graham took COVID-19 tests, which came back negative, before their last debate on Saturday. A large plexiglass shield was also put up next to Harrison’s lectern.
Credit: Joshua Boucher, The State
Tune In
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution’s Tia Mitchell joins McClatchy’s Kristin Roberts and Adam Wollner on the latest episode of the Beyond the Bubble podcast to discuss Biden’s chances of becoming the first Democratic presidential nominee to carry Georgia since 1992. Download and subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | Google Podcasts
Trail Mix
Battleground state watch
A federal judge “rejected calls by several voting rights groups that Florida should further extend its voter registration deadline following repeated outages to the state’s online portal on Monday night, the last day people could sign up to vote in the Nov. 3 election,” Allison Ross writes for the Miami Herald.
A federal appeals court reinstated a Wisconsin law that allows absentee ballots to be counted only if they are returned by Election Day, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel’s Patrick Marley reports.
The Columbus Dispatch’s Darrel Rowland reports that 49, 669 Franklin County, Ohio voters received the wrong absentee ballots.
The Arizona Republic’s Ronald J. Hansen, Uriel J. Garcia and Ryan Randazzo wrap up a day where Biden, Harris and Vice President Mike Pence all visited Arizona.
GOP Rep. Greg Murphy of North Carolina said Harris “was only picked for her color and her race” to be Biden’s running mate, Brian Murphy reports for the Raleigh News & Observer.
The Charlotte Observer’s Deva Bose reports on how domestic violence survivors in North Carolina face unique voting challenges.
Battle for Congress
“Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said he has not been to the White House since August 6 and that he did not feel … Trump and his staffers were taking appropriate precautions to prevent the spread of COVID-19,” Daniel Desrochers writes for the Lexington Herald-Leader.
GOP Rep. Devin Nunes of California has not responded to an invitation to debate Democratic challenger Phil Arballo, continuing a 18-year practice of not engaging with his opponents in forums, Kate Irby reports for the Fresno Bee.
Election disruption
The vice chair of Maryland’s election board is warning against voter intimidation after Trump urged his supporters to monitor the polls on Election Day, the Baltimore Sun’s Emily Opilo reports.
Martin E. Comas reports for the Orlando Sentinel that election supervisors are training poll clerks how to deal with disruption and violence that could occur during the election.
Number of the Day
5
Trump leads Biden by 5 points, 50% to 45%, in Texas, according to a new University of Texas/Texas Tribune poll.
Not giving in
He may not be showing up as an option on most ballots, but Kanye West says friends are still writing his name in.
For Planning Purposes
Oct. 9
Biden travels to Las Vegas, Nev.
Oct. 10
Vice President Mike Pence travels to Florida
Oct. 12
Pence visits Ohio
Oct. 13
Pence visits Waukesha, Wis.
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This story was originally published October 9, 2020 at 1:17 PM.