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There has been a rush of spending on TV ads for the pivotal Georgia U.S. Senate runoff, which is just a 

In that period, some $79 million has been poured in to buy airtime. And spending by groups supporting Democratic incumbent Sen. Raphael Warnock has more than doubled contributions from groups backing Republican challenger Herschel Walker, according to data from the ad-tracking firm AdImpact and analyzed by NPR. 

The contest, which will be decided Tuesday, 

 because no candidate got above the 50% threshold in last month's general election to avoid one. Warnock finished ahead of Walker by nearly a percentage point and missed winning outright by fewer than 22,000 votes. A Libertarian candidate got 2 percent of the vote. 

Winning this Senate seat has been seen as crucial by both major parties and interests that align with them. In all, 

 has been spent on TV ads in the race, according to AdImpact.

Here's how the TV spending for this runoff breaks down: 

And here are the biggest-spending outside groups for the runoff:

And here's the spending from the parties' Senate committees:

If Democrats hang on to the seat, they would expand their majority to 51-49 in the Senate. That would give them a bit of a cushion to pass legislation and confirm Biden administration and judicial nominees. 

 looks bleak for Democrats. If they hope to retain control of the Senate beyond these next two years, winning this seat now could be crucial. 

One other note: There has been $0 in TV spending from former President Donald Trump's MAGA Inc. for the runoff, according to AdImpact. It spent $3.6 million in Georgia in the final weeks leading up to the general election. 

By comparison, the Sen. Mitch McConnell-aligned Senate Leadership Fund and One Nation spent a combined $82 million between the general election and the runoff. 

Politics and Government News

Election 2022

Domenico Montanaro

Author

And spending by groups supporting Democratic incumbent Sen. Raphael Warnock has more than doubled contributions from groups backing Republican challenger Herschel Walker.

Almost $80 million is spent on TV ads for Georgia's 4-week Senate runoff

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