A.O.C.'s Digital Juggernaut [View all]

[NurseJackie]

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/23/us/politics/aoc-facebook-ads.html

A.O.C.’s Digital Juggernaut
The congresswoman is vastly outspending her fellow House members, and even most senators, online.

By Nick Corasaniti
June 23, 2020

Around this time in 2018, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez was a relatively unknown challenger to Representative Joe Crowley, the entrenched and powerful Democratic incumbent from New York’s 14th Congressional District. Her upset primary victory catapulted her to political stardom and immense influence.

And immense cash. Ms. Ocasio-Cortez has raised more than $10.3 million over the past two years, millions of which she has deployed aggressively online, far outpacing her fellow House members.

Since the beginning of this election cycle in 2019, she’s spent $3.6 million on Facebook ads, including nearly $2.4 million since January, according to her campaign. The next biggest digital advertiser among House members in 2020 is Representative Adam Schiff of California, who spent $620,000 online, according to the tracking firm Advertising Analytics.

Indeed, Ms. Ocasio-Cortez’s online spending has outpaced those of most Senate campaigns this cycle, including well-funded candidates like Mark Kelly in Arizona, Sara Gideon in Maine and Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina.

As New York holds its congressional primary elections today, Ms. Ocasio-Cortez is facing a well-financed challenger in Michelle Caruso-Cabrera, a former CNBC anchor, who lent her own campaign $1 million recently, though she has spent only about $177,000 online. Though Ms. Ocasio-Cortez remains popular, there has been scant public polling on the race, and her spending is a sign that she is taking the challenge from Ms. Caruso-Cabrera seriously.