In 2014, the race between Kay Hagan and Thom Tillis set the record as the most expensive U.S. Senate election in history.
In contrast, the 2016 race between Republican Richard Burr and Democrat Deborah Ross has been a bit of a sleeper. But that seems about to change.
So what did you do over the past five days? Enjoy your long weekend, perhaps go to a barbeque?
If you’re Senator Richard Burr, or members of his election staff, chances are you spent the last five days smiling thanks to more than $9 million pledged by Super PACs to support the campaign.
The first announcement came Thursday when the Senate Leadership Fund, whose purpose is to keep the U.S. Senate under Republican control, announced they would spend more than $8 million in TV ads in North Carolina. It’s a huge buy for the group which has just over $18 million in the bank.
Then, on Tuesday, the Super PAC run by John Bolton, the former U.S. ambassador to the U.N., jumped on board as well. They pledged to spend more than $1 million in support of the Burr campaign.
This too is a huge chunk of their change, more than double what the group is spending in all other states combined.
Burr already has more money in the bank than Democrat Deborah Ross, his main opponent in the race. But Ross has outraised the incumbent in the last two quarters. And despite the fact that Ross is still a relative unknown statewide, polls show this is a very tight race.
Ross and Burr also face Libertarian Sean Haugh on election day.
