The State of Political Ad Spending Going into Q4

In 2024, the usual Q4 CPM ramp-up period will arrive earlier than usual, fueled by an influx of political spending ahead of the 2024 Presidential Election on November 5th. In New Engen Election Insights Dashboard Trends to Watch in Q3, we shared our forecast for CPMs through the end of the year and emphasized that costs will begin to rise during the week of September 23rd. And considering that the 23rd is just days away (yes, really!), we’re keeping a close eye on the New Engen Election Insights Dashboard to keep brands and digital marketers up to date with the latest trends.

For more information about the dashboard, check out our guide to using the tool.

How Democrats & Republicans Are Spending

Since announcing that Kamala Harris would be the Democratic party nominee, the Harris-Walz campaign has maintained a heavy level of spending on YouTube, Meta, & OTT. Currently, Meta is the only of these three channels that has seen a rise in CPMs, by 5% YoY.

Political spending by Republicans has also been on the rise since Q3, though it is weighted more heavily toward YouTube and traditional channels like OTT and Programmatic Video. Notably, Programmatic Video CPMs are up by +19% YoY for Non-Political advertisers right now.

Excluding the spike in Programmatic Video costs, Non-Political CPMs are down on the whole compared to last quarter and overall stable YoY. However, if 2020 is any indicator of what’s to come, CPM prices are about to pick up.

Opportunities for Advertisers Right Now

Despite heavy spending on YouTube from both major political parties, CPMs remain favorable for non-political advertisers right now. For the last seven weeks (since the Harris campaign joined the race and political spending ramped up), non-political CPMs on YouTube are actually down by -5% YoY. Advertisers may be able to capitalize on YouTube’s relatively low costs before CPMs (inevitably) rise in Q4.

In the coming months, we’ll continue to provide updates and flag important trends that brands and advertisers should be aware of. Don’t miss out on real-time insights by subscribing to our newsletter and following us on LinkedIn.