A Democratic super PAC, American Bridge 21st Century, is launching a $25 million advertising campaign in three swing states – Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin. The ads feature voter testimonials about former President Donald Trump’s role in curbing abortion access. This initial wave of ads is part of a larger planned $140 million campaign by the group to persuade swing voters in these states to reject Trump’s bid for a return to the White House, following President Joe Biden’s victory in 2020. The ads will target women voters in rural and exurban areas of these states and aim to use emotional stories to influence election outcomes since the US Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022.
Bradley Beychok, co-founder of American Bridge, stated that the group has recruited hundreds of voters willing to share their stories on how another Trump administration would be devastating for them. Trump’s nomination of three conservative justices to the Supreme Court paved the way for the Dobbs decision overturning the federal right to abortion, making it one of the most contentious issues in politics. Biden’s campaign is seeking to make abortion access a defining issue in the 2024 election. While Trump has taken credit for the court’s decision, he has indicated that decisions on abortion should be left to individual states and has not disclosed how he would vote on abortion access measures on upcoming ballots.
The American Bridge ads feature testimonials from voters, such as a Wisconsin woman named Anna, an OB-GYN and mother of two, who tearfully describes having to terminate a wanted pregnancy due to health concerns. Another ad features Lori, a nurse from central Pennsylvania, expressing concern about the impact of the Dobbs decision on her daughter and granddaughter. The ads aim to humanize the impact of Trump’s policies on everyday people and make a case against his re-election based on his stance on abortion rights.
The ads are targeted at four types of voters – moderates, swing voters, conservatives who are opposed to hard-right Republican rhetoric, and “double doubters” who are not enthusiastic about either Trump or Biden. American Bridge has a $200 million budget for its anti-Trump efforts in the 2024 election, including the $140 million advertising campaign. Another wave of testimonial-style ads is planned for the summer in the three battleground states of Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin. The group is aiming to use emotional stories from voters to sway undecided and swing voters away from supporting Trump’s bid for re-election.
