U.S. Representative Madison Cawthorn lags behind competitors in ad spend when it comes to politics

US Representative Madison Cawthorn, RN.C. didn’t spend any money on local TV ads in its bid to win the GOP Tuesday primaries, falling behind many rivals and facing opposition within the government. party to retain its parliamentary seat.

According to data from Medium Buy, Cawthorn’s campaign spent more than $147,000 on cable points during construction through primary Tuesday. His campaign raked in about $13,000 into radio stations. Cawthorn was embroiled in a series of controversies during its primary build, including allegations of insider trading is possible and call Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was a “thug” when his country faced a Russian invasion.

Although Cawthorn still leads other candidates for his seat in a recent poll, it is similar. survey showed a drop of about 10 percentage points among likely primary voters. Cawthorn’s campaign began in May with just over $137,000 in hand, according to Federal Election Commission filings. Former President Donald Trump throw his support behind Cawthorn in a upload on his Truth Social account, urging voters to “give Madison a second chance.”

A representative for Cawthorn did not request comment.

North Carolina Republican Senator Thom Tillis, who became a staunch critic of Cawthorn, authentication GOP State Senator Chuck Edwards in the race for the House of Cawthorn seat. Edwards’ campaign spent more than $417,000 on campaign ads this cycle, including just over $316,000 on local TV ads, Medium Buy data shows. A super PAC straight with Tillis called Results for NC spent more than $1 million on TV commercials, with most of the airtime being spent opposing Cawthorn and supporting Edwards.

Super PACs have become an important campaign tool in recent years because donations are unlimited and they can spend unlimited amounts on an issue or campaign as long as the candidate does not directly control how the fund is spent.

PAC has raised over $1 million with large donations from the likes of Ryan Salame, Co-CEO of FTX Digital Markets, a subsidiary of crypto exchange FTX; John Clay Sykes, founder of utility giant ESG Operations; North Carolina oil supplier JH Reaben Oil & Supply Co. and Americans for a Balanced Budget, a 501(c)(4) nonprofit that fights back against what it sees as excessive government spending. Nonprofits do not publicly disclose their donors.

Douglas Stewart, the organization’s president, played a key role in North Carolina politics when he was the chief financial officer of the North Carolina Republican Party and chief of staff to Congressman Patrick McHenry, RN.C., according to the website of Americans for a Balanced Budget.

Representatives for Salame, Sykes, JH Reaben Oil and the Americans for the Balanced Budget did not request comment.