Republicans are making a last-ditch effort to flip Nevada’s Senate seat, optimistic that a strong performance by former President Donald Trump in the state could boost Republican Senate candidate Sam Brown.
Senate Leadership Fund, the main GOP super PAC involved in Senate races, plans to spend $6.2 million on TV, radio and digital ads in Nevada, according to ad spending figures first released by NBC News have been shared.
It is the group’s first expenditures in the state, marking a relatively late entry into the battle, which until now has been marked by a split between a competitive presidential race and a more comfortable position for Rosen in the public opinion polls. SLF has spent tens of millions of dollars in other Senate battlegrounds in recent months. It’s a sign that Republicans view Democratic Sen. Jacky Rosen’s reelection race as increasingly competitive.
“Jacky Rosen has been a reliable voice for the Democrats’ extreme agenda and is a lackluster candidate,” SLF Chairman and CEO Steven Law said in a statement. “President Trump is doing very well in Nevada and we think Sam Brown can do the same.”
Nevada Republicans believe the state’s economic struggles, along with a shift to the right among Latino voters, have put it in play for the Republican Party. Nevada is known for its close races, with President Joe Biden winning Nevada by just 2 points in 2020 and Democratic Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto winning reelection in 2022 by fewer than 8,000 votes.
“It could be the best environment Republicans have seen in a presidential year in 20 years,” Nevada Republican Party strategist Jeremy Hughes recently told NBC News.
But Brown, an Army veteran, has trailed Trump in public opinion polls, and some Republicans have expressed concern that they could miss an opportunity to flip the Senate seat.
A recent AARP poll found Trump leading Harris by 2 points among likely Nevada voters, 49% to 47%, within the survey’s 4-point margin of error. But the same survey showed Rosen ahead of Brown by five points, from 49% to 44%.
Rosen and her Democratic allies have long outed Republicans on the airwaves. Since Labor Day, Democrats have spent a combined $38.3 million on ads in Nevada, while Republicans have spent $27.6 million. But Brown’s campaign, with a boost from the National Republican Senatorial Committee, has ramped up spending this month, according to AdImpact, an ad spending tracker.
The Senate Leadership Fund has so far focused much of its resources on Montana and Ohio, two of the party’s best opportunities as the Republican Party looks to take control of the Senate. The group has also increased its spending in Michigan, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin and Nebraska.
This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
