U.S. Sen. David Perdue’s latest ad shifts focus to the response to the coronavirus pandemic, highlighting the Republican’s support for the Paycheck Protection Program and legislation to finance reopening plans for school systems.
With polls showing Perdue in a tight race against Democrat Jon Ossoff, the first-term incumbent is hoping to frame himself as a lawmaker who “got to work” to prevent deeper economic troubles and push legislation to help students “safely return or virtually learn.”
The ad comes days after Ossoff filmed a 30-second spot from the living room of his Atlanta home, where he recorded because he’s in self-isolation after his wife contracted the disease. Ossoff urges policymakers to listen to medical experts, coordinate a testing strategy and “stop politicizing masks.”
Perdue’s newest spot is part of a volley that rebrands him as the “original outsider” and asserts that Ossoff and other Democrats threaten the American dream.
Ossoff campaign spokeswoman Miryam Lipper said that Perdue’s pollster must have “warned him voters are infuriated” by his opposition to extending short-term unemployment benefits for those left jobless during the coronavirus pandemic.
The Republican, who leads Ossoff in a recent Monmouth University poll, also stands to benefit from outside interests that have spent at least $24 million on pro-Perdue ads. One newly-formed group, One Georgia, released an ad this week focused on the incumbent’s agriculture policy.
About the Author
