First in The Blast: The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee is launching digital ads against the Republican nominees in three battleground districts in Texas, its first paid media of the general election this cycle — and ever — in each place.
The spots, which will run on YouTube beginning this week, target Rep. Michael McCaul, R-Austin; Troy Nehls, the GOP nominee to replace retiring Rep. Pete Olson, R-Sugar Land; and Beth Van Duyne, the GOP nominee for the seat of retiring Rep. Kenny Marchant, R-Coppell. The ads against Nehls, the sheriff in rapidly diversifying Fort Bend County, are running in English as well as Hindi and Chinese, which the DCCC called a first-of-its-kind investment.
Health care is a common theme across the ads, especially for the McCaul spot, which points to his many votes to undo Obamacare and a 2013 boast about them. But the ads also highlight other vulnerabilities unique to the candidates, such as Nehls' firing from the Richmond Police Department in 1998 and controversies from Van Duyne's time as Irving mayor.
“As Texas communities reject their dangerous agenda along with an unprepared pandemic response, these new ads are the latest in our effort to engage the diverse communities that are putting seats across Texas in play," DCCC Chairwoman Cheri Bustos says in a statement.
The committee called the size of the digital buy "significant" but did not elaborate.
Regardless, the ads set the stage for the general election in each district now that the primary runoffs are over. Nehls emerged from a runoff last week to face Sri Preston Kulkarni, already the Democratic nominee for the 22nd District. McCaul and Van Duyne, meanwhile, had been awaiting the outcomes of Democratic runoffs in their districts. Mike Siegel won the runoff to challenge McCaul, while Candace Valenzuela prevailed in the runoff to face Van Duyne.
Valenzuela's campaign announced this morning that she's raised over $130,000 since becoming the nominee a week ago.
The three districts included in the digital buy are among seven that the DCCC is looking to flip this fall in Texas.
Watch the ads:
— Patrick Svitek
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