Pity the voters of Minnesota. There was little doubt that this contest between GOP incumbent Sen. Norm Coleman and satirist Al Franken would be the marquee Senate race of the cycle, attracting national attention and tens of millions of dollars. And, the predictions that it would become one of the nastiest races in the country are proving true.
Even with this understanding, it is unlikely that voters were prepared for the barrage of television advertising in the race. By our count, there have been at least 40 different television ads aired since the beginning of July. While the Coleman and Franken campaigns are responsible for a vast majority of the ads, the National Republican Senatorial Committee and the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, as well as several third-party groups have joined the fray. So, pity Minnesota voters for there are still six weeks to go.
The start of the ad war marked a new chapter in what has been a very long campaign. Franken had spent much of last year convincing voters that he was a credible candidate who was well-versed
Subscribe Today
Our subscribers have first access to individual race pages for each House, Senate and Governors race, which will include race ratings (each race is rated on a seven-point scale) and a narrative analysis pertaining to that race.