Nevada Dem dumps $14M into ads as critical Senate race shifts to 'toss up'

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Trumps former ambassador to Iceland enters Nevada Senate race

A former Trump official entered the Nevada Republican primary race for Senate.

Nevada Democratic Sen. Jacky Rosen revealed a whopping $14 million ad reservation for the general election season as she braces for a tough challenge from Republicans. 

The multimillion-dollar reservation was made for ads that will run from July through Election Day in November. It is also the largest such reservation ever made in Nevada by a Senate candidate. The ad buy will include media markets in Las Vegas and Reno.

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Sen. Jacky Rosen made a record-breaking ad reservation ahead of a tough challenge in Nevada. (Getty Images)

Rosen's latest move comes one day after the Nevada Senate race was shifted from "Lean Democrat" to "Toss Up" by the nonpartisan elections analyst, the Cook Political Report. The matchup joins Senate races in Ohio, Arizona and Montana in the category. 

"While her extreme Republican opponents are busy trying to out-MAGA each other, Jacky Rosen is reaching Nevada voters for the general election and sharing her record as one of the most bipartisan and effective senators," said Stewart Boss, Rosen's campaign manager, in a press release. The Republicans vying for her Senate seat are in the midst of a crowded primary that won't be determined until the election on June 11. 

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Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto defeated Adam Laxalt narrowly in 2022. (Getty Images)

The $14 million reservation is larger than a similar one made by Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto, D-Nev., during her 2022 re-election bid. The senator reserved $10 million worth of ad space on the airwaves between Labor Day and Election Day during the campaign. This was the largest such reservation at the time. 

Cortez Masto ultimately narrowly defeated her Republican opponent, Adam Laxalt.

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"She’s going to need it," said National Republican Senatorial Committee spokesperson Mike Berg, referencing the recent ratings change. He said she was in "a dangerous spot" for an incumbent. 

Rosen votes in line with her party leaders, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and President Biden, most of the time. (Getty Images)

"Jacky Rosen is scrambling to cover up her record of being in lockstep with Joe Biden," remarked Nevada Republican strategist Jeremy Hughes.

After Rosen released an ad this week touting herself as bipartisan, critics pointed out that she voted in alignment with President Biden nearly 99% of the time in 2023. 

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While her $14 million ad reservation is the largest of its kind in a Nevada Senate race, political advertising spending is notorious for being high in the state. In the 2022 Senate race, $161 million was spent by candidates and related groups on political advertising for the general election, per AdImpact. This included $32 million from Cortez Masto, $30 million from the Democratic-aligned Senate Majority PAC, $28 million from the Republican-aligned Senate Leadership Fund, $12 million from the conservative Club for Growth Action, $11 million from the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, $9 million from the conservative One Nation, $3 million from Laxalt, and $6 million in a coordinated buy from Laxalt and the NRSC. 

Former Army Capt. Sam Brown is expected to be the Republican nominee to take on Sen. Rosen in the general election. (Getty Images)

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The 2022 Senate race was a component of what made Nevada's general election the third most expensive in the country, according to AdImpact. 

Rosen could face a slate of possible Republican opponents. However, former U.S. Army Capt. Sam Brown has proven to be the frontrunner, garnering national media attention and high-profile endorsements. Former Trump official Jeff Gunter, veteran Air Force pilot Tony Grady and former state Assemblyman Jim Marchant are other prominent Republican candidates seeking the Senate nomination.