Mediaboss Marketing

ALBANY If you have ever "liked" the Facebook accounts of the reality show "Duck Dynasty," the Michigan pop star Kid Rock or the comedian Larry the Cable Guy, dont expect to see campaign ads on the platform from Matt Castelli or Matt Putorti ahead of Tuesday's congressional primary.

But if you like NPR's "Morning Edition," "CNN Health" or the New York Times' Style section, you're more likely to see an ad for the two Democrats vying for the chance to take on U.S. Rep. Elise Stefanik. And it could happen whether you live in Rome, N.Y., or Rome, Iowa.

While the Democrats have spent a total of less than $20,000 on Facebook ads over the past month most of it by Castelli they've hauled in roughly $2 million. The data that informs the targeting of those ads gives a sense of what's become a nationalized race to unseat or retain Stefanik, now the third-most-powerful member of the GOP conference.

Castelli, who has the endorsement of the district's Democratic county committees, and Putorti have waged national campaigns online that take advantage of Stefanik's polarizing transformation into a self-described "ultra-MAGA" defender of former President Donald J. Trump. There has been no publicly released polling in the primary face-off.

Facebook is not the only battlefield in what's become a social media war. Castelli has 72,000 followers on Twitter; Putorti has 136,000. But Stefanik has amassed almost 900,000 across her campaign and congressional accounts.

"In Washington, politicians like Elise Stefanik put their own interests and party loyalty first," Castelli says in a campaign ad that's pinned to the top of his Twitter feed (128,000 views). Putorti's pinned ad claims Stefanik is "too busy kissing Donald Trump's ass to look out for ours" (240,000 views).

Castelliwas a CIA officer and later the director of counterterrorism efforts for President Barack Obama's National Security Council. Putorti is a civil rights lawyer who has focused on LGBTQ equality, gun violence and immigration issues.

Castelli, a Glens Falls resident who grew up near Poughkeepsie, was raised in a Catholic household by parents with divergent political loyalties. Purtorti, who lives in Whitehall, went through the public school system before moving on to Boston College, Oxford University and Fordham Law School.

Castelli has positioned himself as the moderate in a campaign focused on the economy, prescription drug costs and health care access for women. Putorti has taken a slightly more progressive path, highlighting abortion rights, climate change and firearms.

Headed into the final days of the campaign, Castelli had raised $1.1 million and spent $683,000, while Putorti raised $880,000 and spent $649,000.

Less than 18 percent of Castelli's donors gave less than $200, while Putorti raised a third of his money from those donors. Both candidates received at least a third of their donations from out of state although campaign finance records don't specify the geographic point of origin for small donations.

The candidates' Facebook ads are clearly designed to appeal to a national audience those who can't vote in the district but can send a check.

Castelli spent $15,000 on Facebook ads over the past month. Public data from the platform showed that 84 percent of those ads were served up to viewers outside the North Country district. The candidate's campaign made sure the ads did not target people interested in Kid Rock, the conservative action star Chuck Norris or NASCAR, among several other topics and personalities. Instead, Castelli targeted people with interests in social change, community issues and activism.

Putorti spent $3,200 on Facebook ads over the same period, with two-thirds aimed at a national audience and the rest to anyone in New York. Similar to his primary rival's spots, these ads excluded people interested in the MAGA guitarist Ted Nugent, Barstool Sports and Clint Eastwood in favor of people interested in Politico, social change and feminist philosophy.

Stefanik has spent $23,000 on Facebook ads, almost exclusively targeting voters in New York. Her ads offered no tailored target demographics.

The incumbent holds a massive lead in campaign cash, especially as the two Democrats are forced to burn campaign dollars to win the nomination. Stefanik has raised $7.3 million over the past two years, and spent or disbursed $6.7 million $2.6 million of which was transferred to other political accounts. She maintains $2.6 million in her campaign account.

Beyond her incumbency and rising status as a Trump loyalist, Stefanik benefits from a district that has become more conservative in its voter makeup after the state's recent redistricting process. In the newly drawn district which extends significantly farther into Rensselaer County than Stefanik's current map Trump won 56 percent of voters in 2020. (He earned 54 percent in the current 21st District.)

Stefanik won 59 percent of the vote that year, besting Tedra Cobb; in 2018, Stefanik beat Cobb with 56 percent of the vote. In that election cycle, both candidates saw significant success fundraising off the Republican's high profile as a member of Trump's defense team during his first impeachment. (She was joined in that effort by U.S. Rep. Lee Zeldin of Long Island, who is challenging Gov. Kathy Hochul.)

On Thursday, Castelli asked his Twitter followers in the district to "Share with a friend or neighbor ... why you'll be voting." While there were only a few initial replies, one came from an account based out of San Francisco: "Defeat Elise!"

An earlier version of this story incorrectly stated where Matt Castelli is from. He grew up in the Hudson Valley near Poughkeepsie. The story also stated Stefanik had spent $6.7 million of her campaign fund but $2.5 million of that was transferred to other political accounts.

Read this article:
Democrats angling to defeat Stefanik look to donors nationwide - Times Union