This edition's trivia: What is the most expensive gubernatorial race on record?
(Answer is at the end of the newsletter)
— New York City's Mayoral Race
The New York City mayoral general election has seen $21.7M in spending ahead of Election Day, which is just under half of the $38.7M primary election. The entire race ranks as the third-most expensive mayoral race on record ($60.3M), behind Los Angeles 2022 ($78.0M) and New York City 2021 ($64.2M).
Democratic nominee Zohran Mamdani leads in general election ad support: his $5.8M is slightly ahead of Andrew Cuomo's $5.7M. Both candidates have seen the majority of their support come from their respective campaigns. In the primary, Cuomo spent $20.6M compared to Mamdani's $6.3M. Mamdani has also seen $5.8M in spending against him from groups such as For Our City ($5.5M), Vote Common Sense ($736K), and Fix the City ($248K). Republican candidate Curtis Sliwa has seen $2.9M in ad support, all from his campaign.
Virginia has seen $156.7M in ad spending around its 2025 statewide races, up from $123.4M in 2021 and $77.8M in 2023.
The gubernatorial race leads spending in the state, with $78.3M. The general election has seen $74.0M in spending, with Democratic advertisers accounting for 66%. Abigail Spanberger's campaign (D) has spent $47.5M (including a coordinated buy with VoteVets Action Fund), and no other Democratic advertiser has spent more than $400K. Her opponent, Winsome Earle-Sears, has spent $21.9M, and Restoration of America PAC has added $3.3M. The top airing ads in the election come from Spanberger, which focus on law enforcement & education and connect Earle-Sears to Trump.
The attorney general's race, which garnered national attention after Democratic candidate Jay Jones' texts leaked, has become the most expensive attorney general race on record. It has seen $38.4M, and $33.1M comes in the general election; it is the most expensive Attorney General race on record. Incumbent Jason Miyares represents 66% of the spending as he airs ads focusing on Jones's texts. On the other hand, Jones's top airing ad features a prosecutor and sheriff highlighting his accomplishments. Interestingly, there has been more focus on Jones's texts in the gubernatorial race.
Finally, the battle for the Virginia state house has seen $30.7M, slightly behind the $33.2M figure from 2023. Overall, Democrats lead by $14.9M, significantly outspending Republicans across the board. There are nine general elections with over $2.0M in spending: Democrats hold at least a $700K advantage in all but one.
— New Jersey's Gubernatorial Race
The New Jersey gubernatorial race is the second most expensive gubernatorial raceon record, getting $199.1M in ad spend. While the primary election saw $96.8M, the general has surpassed that with $102.3M. Unlike the Virginia gubernatorial race, issue groups dominate this election, representing 69% of all spending.
Mikie Sherrill (D) leads in ad support, garnering $54.2M in total spending behind her. The top advertiser supporting Sherrill is issue group Greater Garden State. They have spent $34.1M in the election, nearly double the next closest advertiser. The Sherrill campaign has added $15.1M, and One Giant Leap PAC has spent $4.5M. On the Republican side, Restore NJ is the leading advertiser, spending $21.5M, and Jack Ciattarelli's campaign has spent $16.4M.
California Prop 50: The redistricting ballot proposition in California is 2025's second most expensive race: it's seen $127M in ad spend. Advertisers supporting Prop 50 have spent $92.0M, and those in opposition backed off the airwaves in mid-October. Since October 11th, advertisers supporting Prop 50 have outspent those opposing it by $39.9M to $5.1M. Additionally, there is under $30K in anti-Prop 50 spending for the last week before Election Day.
Pennsylvania Supreme Court:The Pennsylvania Supreme Court currently has a 5-2 Democratic advantage, but the three Democrats up for re-election this year put the court majority at stake. The general election has seen $14.9M, making it the seventh state supreme court election to surpass $10M in ad spending. Democratic advertisers have an $9.5M spending advantage, lead by Pennsylvanians for Judicial Fairness ($4.4M) and Vote Yes for Fair Courts ($3.0M). There is just $1.5M total in candidate spending in the general election.
2025's Historic Pace as an Off-Year: As of today, 2025 has seen $1.56B in total spending and reservations, making it the most expensive off-year on record. With two months before the end of the year, it is pacing over $400M ahead of 2023. While 2023 saw $300M in Presidential primary spending, 2025 is seeing record-setting levels of off-year spending for both off-year elections and next year's federal elections.
— Check Out Our 2025-2026 Projections Report
You can find all our advertising analysis on our blog.
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