Candidates and groups in 14 legislative races in Wisconsin were on track to spend $21 million on paid media over the final two weeks of the election with ads focused on healthcare, taxation and data centers, according to AdImpact data.

Collectively, Dems in those races had the spending advantage at nearly $11.8 million to almost $9.3 million on the GOP side.

Still, Republicans had the advantage in the two races set to see the most spending in the closing days. Nearly $2.7 million in ad reservations were counted in the 17th SD, where Sen. Howard Marklein, R-Spring Green, faces state Rep. Jenna Jacobson, D-Oregon. Of that, nearly $1.6 million was slated to be spent on the GOP side.

Meanwhile, almost $2.2 million in reservations were recorded in the 85th AD, where GOP state Pat Snyder, of Weston, faces Dem Marathon County Supv. John Kroll. Snyder and his allies accounted for nearly $1.15 million of that spending.

In the 17th, the most heavily aired ad is one from the Dem-aligned New Wisconsin Majority that accuses Marklein of being in the pocket of his corporate donors. The next most aired ad spot is one from Marklein that accuses Jacobson of lying about his record of helping people with diabetes. “That’s insane,” Marklein says in the spot. “I have diabetes. Why would I do that?”

In the 85th, the most heavily aired ad over the final two weeks is one from Kroll that says Snyder took money from the leading insulin maker and voted against capping the prices of the drug. The second most aired spot is one from Snyder accusing Kroll of voting for higher taxes and doing a fundraiser with Madison socialists who want to raise taxes by $10 billion to “give taxpayer-funded welfare to illegal immigrants.”

Here’s an overview of spending in the top legislative races, according to data from AdImpact:

Senate

*Spending in the race for the deep red 9th SD in the Sheboygan area is nearing $2 million just for the final 14 days of the race. While Christian Ellis, a Marine veteran who owns a small recruiting company, is running as an independent, he’s getting a significant boost from the State Senate Democratic Committee and the Dem-aligned New Wisconsin Majority. Altogether, they’ve laid down nearly $1.7 million in paid media compared to the $262,800 reserved to help Republican Amy Binsfeld, who served one term in the Assembly. The four most aired ads in the campaign tout Ellis as an independent voice while accusing Binsfeld of corruption. Binsfeld’s spot calls Ellis a socialist who “sides with radical politicians.” 

*The race for northern Wisconsin’s open 25th SD is on track to see nearly $1.6 million in paid media over the final two weeks. Dems have laid down nearly $828,000 to boost Dem Charly Ray, a member of the Bayfield County Board, while Republicans had $738,500 in reservations for former GOP state Rep. Erik Severson, of Star Prairie. The most aired spot over the final two weeks is one from Ray accusing Severson, a doctor, of charging Medicare as much as 18 times what was allowed. The second most aired spot is one from Severson saying he spent decades as a family doctor caring for local families and is working to deliver a brighter future.

*In western Wisconsin’s 31st SD, Republicans had a spending advantage over the final two weeks with nearly $1.4 million to boost Michele Magadance Skinner, an Eau Claire County Board member. Dems have laid down $460,099 for Sen. Jeff Smith, D-Brunswick.

*In the Racine-area’s 21st SD, spending has dropped off significantly, with just $905,880 over the final two weeks and $182,000 for the final seven days. For the full campaign, Dem Trevor Jung, the Racine transit director, and his allies laid down nearly $3.1 million in reservations, compared to the $2.2 billion backing Jim Croft, a small business owner. The Committee to Elect a Republican Senate moved money out of that race in the closing days to boost Binsfeld amid the Dem spending in the 9th SD.

Assembly

*The 61st AD in southeastern Wisconsin is set to see more than $1.8 million in paid media over the final two weeks with Republicans accounting for $974,400 of that to boost state Rep. Bob Donovan, R-Greenfield. Dem and Army vet Ben Brist’s spot encouraging viewers to look up Donovan’s federal indictment for corruption has seen the most airings over the final two weeks. Donovan’s most aired spot is one in which he says “my opponent is telling the same lies they’ve been pushing for years about me and my past.”

*The 30th AD in western Wisconsin is set to see nearly $1.6 million in paid media with $978,000 of that to back Dem Kevin Knoke, a teacher and veteran who lives in Hudon. The most aired spot over the last two weeks is one from Rep. Shannon Zimmerman, R-River Falls, saying he missed votes in the Assembly to deal with family tragedies and accusing Knoke of exploiting that “for cheap political points.” The next most aired spot is one from Knoke saying Zimmerman missed more votes than any member of the Assembly and when “he did show up, he voted for a $2 billion tax break for data centers.”

*The 88th AD in the Green Bay area is set to see more than $1.5 million in paid media over the last two weeks with a slight edge to Republicans, who have laid down $780,000 to boost Rep. Benjamin Franklin, R-De Pere. The most aired spot is a 15-second ad from Dem Brandy Tollefson, a member of the De Pere School Board. The narrator says, “This Ben Franklin keeps costing you more of these Ben Franklins” as the screen shows a stack of $100 bills. Franklin’s most aired spot charges Tollefson’s “dishonesty is out of control.”

*The 89th AD in the Green Bay area is set to see nearly $1.5 million in paid media with a slight edge to Dems, who have laid down $774,000 to boost Rep. Ryan Spaude, D-Green Bay. Spaude’s most aired spot over the last two weeks is one in which he knocks GOP rival Bobby Lindsey, a retired police officer and veteran, for having the support of a “dark money group” while touting his work as a prosecutor and to lower costs. The most aired spot supporting Lindsey is one from the GOP-aligned Jobs First Coalition that targets Spaude and Tollefson. The narrator says Spaude’s “record is creepy” and says Tollefson would follow her lead.

*The 51st AD in southwestern Wisconsin is set to see $1.1 million in paid media, with $640,040 of that to boost Dem Ben Gruber, a conservation warden who lives in Arena, in his challenge of Rep. Todd Novak, R-Dodgeville.

*The 92nd AD in western Wisconsin is set to see $1 million in paid media, with $593,000 of that to boost Dem Jeremiah Fredrickson, the Elm Mound owner of Jeremiah’s Bullfrog Fish Farm, in his challenge of Rep. Clint Moses, R-Menomonie.

*The open 53rd AD is set to see $974,000 in paid media over the final two weeks, with $692,850 of that to boost Dem Becky Nichols, who served on the Menasha Common Council and the Winnebago County Board, against Republican David Daniels, an Air Force veteran and business owner who lives in Neenah. The GOP effort in the race was $282,000, including $132,000 over the final week.

*The open 21st AD is set to see $849,900 in paid media, with $748,400 of that to support Dem Oak Creek Mayor Dan Bukiewicz against Republican Dylan Pfaffenbach, a college student who worked as a legislative aide.