CTV Overtakes Cable as Political Ad Spend Hits $11.4 Billion

By Priya Raman

Political advertisers have spent $11.4 billion in the 2026 midterms cycle to date, 28% more than in the 2022 midterms, according to AdImpact data shared with ADWEEK.

AdImpact, a firm that tracks and analyzes ad spend, has already recorded more political advertising in the current cycle than in any election cycle it tracks.

The $11.4 billion total surpasses the previous record of $11.2 billion from the 2024 U.S. presidential cycle, based on AdImpact's figures.

AdImpact's comparison gives the midterm spending surge unusual scale. The current number is a to-date measure, and it already exceeds the presidential benchmark the firm recorded in 2024.

Connected TV takes the lead

AdImpact's figures mark the first midterm in which connected TV political ad spend overtook cable. The supplied data does not state cable's 2026 total, so it establishes the ranking but not the size of the gap.

AdImpact put the spending increase over 2022 at $2.5 billion. Connected TV received 53% of that additional investment, or more than half of the money added since the previous midterm.

Overall CTV political ad spend rose 122%, from roughly $1.1 billion in the 2022 midterms to $2.4 billion in 2026, according to AdImpact.

The 122% CTV increase far outpaced the 28% rise in total political ad spending. The rates cover different scopes, but AdImpact's figures show that connected TV absorbed a disproportionate share of new investment.

What changes for campaign teams?

The practical change is where campaign teams and agencies can place incremental political budgets. AdImpact's allocation figure shows that 53% of the $2.5 billion increase over 2022 has already gone to CTV.

Media plans should therefore treat connected TV as a central budget decision rather than a late adjustment. The current evidence is not a small mix shift: CTV spending has more than doubled across the two midterm cycles, based on AdImpact's 122% growth figure.

The record total adds another planning constraint. Political advertisers have already spent $11.4 billion in the 2026 midterms, exceeding the $11.2 billion AdImpact recorded for the 2024 U.S. presidential cycle.

Budget owners should distinguish the three measures before drawing conclusions. The $11.4 billion figure covers total political ad spend to date in 2026. The 53% figure covers the allocation of the $2.5 billion increase over 2022. The 122% figure covers CTV growth from roughly $1.1 billion to $2.4 billion.

AdImpact's figures establish where spending has gone. They do not explain why advertisers shifted money, nor do they provide cable's 2026 total, ad prices, audience delivery or campaign-level results. The material shared with ADWEEK contains no such performance measures.

That boundary matters for marketers interpreting the ranking. CTV's first midterm lead over cable shows a change in budget allocation. It does not prove that every CTV placement produced better results for every advertiser.

A record with channel consequences

The strongest conclusion concerns market scale. According to AdImpact, the 2026 midterm cycle has already drawn more political advertising than the 2024 presidential cycle, which had set the previous record at $11.2 billion.

The increase has also concentrated new spending in connected TV. Of the $2.5 billion added since 2022, 53% went to CTV, while CTV's overall political ad spend rose 122% to $2.4 billion.

For campaign strategists, the next test is whether that lead holds as more spending enters the cycle. Continued CTV growth would confirm what the current data already shows: connected TV has become the principal destination for new midterm political budgets.