Bloomberg pours $100 million into 2020 advertising blitz
Bloomberg has spent an average of $3.72 million per day on ads since he announced his campaign in November
Founder and CEO of Tusk Holdings and former campaign manager for previous New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg Bradley Tusk discusses the Democratic candidate's campaign agenda and where he could garner votes in 2020.
Michael Bloomberg has outspent almost every other Democratic presidential candidate on TV and digital ads since he entered the 2020 race less than one month ago.
In the weeks since the former New York City mayor announced his presidential campaign launch on Nov. 24, he’s poured more than $100 million into advertising, according to new figures published by Advertising Analytics. That's an average of $3.72 million per day.
Fellow 2020 billionaire Tom Steyer, the Silicon Valley hedge fund manager, had spent an estimated $60 million on ads as of Dec. 2, according to separate data published by the ad-tracking firm.
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Although Bloomberg is not participating in the Iowa caucuses and won't be on the ballots of other early-voting states, including New Hampshire, South Carolina and Nevada, data shows he's pouring millions into local ads focused on New York and Los Angeles, as well as Texas.
Bloomberg, who's worth an estimated $52 billion, according to Forbes, making him one of the world's richest people, made it clear he intended to use his vast fortune to self-finance his campaign, prompting outrage from several other candidates, including Sens. Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders.
Michael Bloomberg speaks to the media, Tuesday, Nov. 26, 2019 in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Rick Scuteri)
Both progressives have accused Bloomberg — he's decided not to raise money for his bid and will instead use his own wealth — of trying to buy the election. "Bloomberg is making a bet on democracy in 2020," Warren said at the end of November. "He's saying he doesn't need people, he only needs bags and bags of money. I think Michael Bloomberg is wrong, and that's what we need to prove in this election."
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Bloomberg has been outspoken against Warren's and Sanders' intentions to hike taxes on extremely rich Americans. Warren has called for a 2 percent tax on those worth $50 million and a 6 percent levy on Americans worth more than $1 billion. Under her proposal, Bloomberg would be required to pay $3.16 billion in taxes, according to a tax calculator released by her campaign.
Sanders has also been quick to criticize Bloomberg's use of his personal fortune to sway the race.
"I'm disgusted by the idea that Michael Bloomberg or any other billionaire thinks they can circumvent the political process and spend tens of millions of dollars to buy our elections," the Vermont senator said.
Bloomberg, a Republican-turned-Democrat, cofounded the financial information and media company Bloomberg LP in 1981. He now owns about 88 percent of the business, according to Forbes, which is worth a reported $10 billion.