A GOP-affiliated super PAC dropped tens of thousands of dollars on ads attacking Maine Democratic Senate nominee Troy Jackson, but appeared to have made an “embarrassing” mix-up when picking its audience, The Intercept reported Monday.
“The only problem with the ad in question: The group paid for the video ad to show more than 1 million times in the wrong Portland,” The Intercept’s Noah Hurowitz wrote.
The Defending Main Street super PAC, which describes itself as “supporting the governing wing of the Republican Party,” spent between $20,000 and $25,000 on a 30-second ad attacking Jackson “and all his taxes.” But according to Google’s ad records, the ad ran in Portland, Oregon, nearly 3,000 miles from its likely target of Portland, Maine. An X user, waprog, first posted screenshots of the targeting data.
The ad was fixed a few hours later.
The super PAC is affiliated with the Republican Main Street Partnership, which counts Jackson’s opponent, Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME), among its members.
Andy O’Brien, a former Maine state lawmaker and writer who supports Jackson, called the mix-up “hilarious.”
“We have billionaires with no connection to Maine spending millions of dollars to buy Susan Collins the election, so it’s pretty hilarious to see them throwing money at the wrong Portland,” O’Brien told The Intercept. “It’s clear these people don’t know anything about Maine, because they’re directing their ads to the wrong Portland.”
“I’m glad they’re wasting their money in Oregon and not continuing to waste it in Maine,” he added. “At least now Portland, Oregon, residents can enjoy some of the crap we’ve been seeing every single day.”
Maine hasn’t elected a Democrat to the Senate since George Mitchell won in 1988. Its junior senator, Angus King, is an independent who caucuses with Democrats. But Jackson, who replaced Graham Platner as the Democratic nominee in July, has kept pace with Collins, and several recent polls show him with a slim edge.