Va. Senate candidates ramp up attack ads ahead of Election Day

In attack ads running on television ahead of the Nov. 5 election, Republicans are characterizing their opponents as “radical” and “socialist,” and Democrats are criticizing Republicans for their stances on gun policy and health care.

The attack ads and the spending are ratcheting up in the Election Day homestretch.

That’s because running attack ads is an effective political strategy, according to Stephen Farnsworth, professor of political science and director of the University of Mary Washington's Center for Leadership and Media Studies.

"The reason there are so many attack ads is because they work,” Farnsworth said.

Spending on television ads surpassed $1 million in the three key Senate races, which have also brought in the most donations:
• District 12, in which Del. Debra Rodman, D-Henrico, and incumbent Sen. Siobhan Dunnavant, R-Henrico, have spent a combined $1.9 million.
• District 10, in which Democratic challenger Ghazala Hashmi and incumbent Sen. Glen Sturtevant, R-Richmond, have spent a combined $1.7 million.
• District 7, in which Del. Cheryl Turpin,Virginia Beach, and Republican challenger Jen Kiggans have spent a combined $1.1 million.
These three races are considered competitive because they have a Republican state senator, but voted blue in and ever since the 2016 presidential election, with the exception of District 7, which was split evenly among both candidates in 2016, but has voted Democratic since.

Dunnavant vs. Rodman
As of Thursday, in District 12, Dunnavant’s campaign has spent more than $1 million on television ads compared to Rodman’s $895,820, according to a data analysis from the Virginia Public Access Project.

In September, Rodman raised more than $1 million in cash and in-kind contributions as she vies for a seat in the state Senate. Dunnavant raised $421,362. In-kind contributions are donated goods and services, such as mailers and postage, office space, and administrative assistance, that are given to candidates in place of cash donations.

Rodman’s attack ads focus on Dunnavant’s voting record on health care policy.

In a 30-second ad titled “Would Be Devastating,” a Henrico County OB-GYN says that “Siobhan Dunnavant is just doing what the insurance companies want.”

The ad, which has aired 303 times since Oct. 12, claims that Dunnavant wrote a bill making it easier for insurance companies to deny coverage for preexisting conditions.

John Findlay, executive director of the Republican Party of Virginia, calls this claim “a blatant lie,” citing Politifact Virginia's rating of the claim as “false.”

The Rodman-sponsored ad and campaign mailer were rated false based on the language – insurance companies could already write short-term policies omitting pre-existing conditions, Politifact said – and the premise that it would affect any Virginian when it would affect about 21%.

In another 30-second ad titled “Waiting Room,” Rodman appears on camera saying, “I respect Siobhan Dunnavant’s work as a doctor, but she’s forgotten what it’s like to sit here with your children and wonder if you can afford the care they need.” The ad first aired on Sept. 19 and has played 531 times.

Dunnavant has focused on Rodman’s agenda in several ads. In “False Attacks,” a 30-second ad that first aired on Oct. 4 and has played 242 times, a narrator says, “Debra Rodman: exaggerated claims, false attacks to hide her radical agenda.”

Dunnavant scrutinizes Rodman’s agenda in “Radical Liberal Rodman,” a 30-second ad that first aired on Sept. 26 and has played 214 times. The ad criticizes Rodman calling for a constitutional amendment to allow 16-year-olds to vote, saying that “16-year-olds often do crazy, immature things.”

Sturtevant vs. Hashmi
With $1.7 million spent on media buys, the 10th District is close behind the 12th. Democratic challenger Ghazala Hashmi has spent $764,254 on television ads compared to Republican Sturtevant’s $955,230.

Hashmi raised $645,444 compared to Sturtevant’s $289,075, in September.

The Hashmi campaign has run two attack ads critical of Sturtevant’s gun policy. In “Behind Sturtevant’s Campaign,” a 30-second ad that first aired on Oct. 11 and has played 401 times, a narrator claims that Sturtevant has blocked “common sense gun reform” and that “the real Sturtevant is wrong for state Senate.”

“Wonder,” a 30-second ad that first aired on Oct. 18 and has played 118 times, says “the gun lobby spent $70,000 to elect Sturtevant.”

Hashmi is also portrayed as a political radical by associating her with politicians who identify with socialist ideas and are often attacked by President Donald Trump.

“Partisan Politics,” a 30-second ad that first aired on Oct. 9 and has played 269 times, opens with a photo of Hashmi amongst photos of Democratic Congresswomen Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Rashida Tlaib, Ilhan Omar, and Democratic Senator and presidential candidate Bernie Sanders. A narrator says, “Ghazala Hashmi wants to bring Washington’s extreme socialist agenda to Virginia.”

“Political Opportunist,” a 30-second ad that has played 331 times since it first aired on Sept. 23, concludes by saying Hashmi is a political opportunist, and has radical policies.

“Sen. Sturtevant’s political scare tactics are desperate and absurd,” Hashmi campaign manager Philip Stein said in a statement. “The only ‘extreme radical’ in this race who is out of touch with the values of voters in the 10th District is Sen. Sturtevant.”

Kiggans vs. Turpin
In the 7th District, Democrat Cheryl Turpin spent $561,478 on television ads compared to Republican Jen Kiggans’ $543,220.

Turpin has raised $676,973 compared to Kiggans’ $330,128.

Turpin has gone after Kiggans’ stance on health care in all four TV ads. The most recent television ad, “No Surprise,” says “don’t trust Jen Kiggans to protect your health care.” The 30-second ad, which first aired on Oct. 19, has played 134 times.

In Kiggans’ most recent television ad, which first aired on Oct. 16 and has played 144 times, a narrator says that Turpin’s “record shows she’s a far-left socialist Democrat.”

“Multiple others [Democratic candidates] have advocated policies, such as the Green New Deal and Tran abortion bill, which are far out of step with the mainstream in Virginia,” Findlay said.

According to Farnsworth, attack ads can rally a candidate’s base.

“These ads don’t generally change minds, but they do get voters energized about politics, and thereby more likely to vote,” he said, noting that voter turnout is important in an off-year election year when turnout is traditionally lower. “The more you can do as a candidate to get your supporters agitated, the more likely they are to get involved and actually turn out to vote.”