Susan Collins Super Pac Ad Mixup
In short
A political action committee supporting Senator Susan Collins accidentally aired campaign advertisements in Portland, Oregon, instead of Portland, Maine. The mistake cost the group approximately £19,000 ($25,000) in wasted advertising spend.
In plain words
A group called Defending Main Street tried to help Susan Collins win her Senate race in Maine. However, their team sent the adverts to the wrong city because both cities share the same name. This meant people in Oregon saw ads that were meant for voters in Maine.
A simple example
A campaign meant to reach voters in Portland, Maine, accidentally paid to show its adverts to residents in Portland, Oregon.
Why it matters
The error highlights how easily large sums of political money can be wasted through simple technical mistakes. It also became a subject of mockery on social media during a high-stakes election period.
Easy to mix up
Do not confuse this with a deliberate attempt to influence Oregon voters; it was a genuine clerical error caused by identical city names.
Sources
- Become an Independent member to bookmark this article
- Ad targeting Maine Sen. Susan Collins' opponent Troy Jackson ran in wrong state. Who paid?
- Group backing Susan Collins in Maine mistakenly runs ads in Portland, Oregon, instead of Portland, Maine
- Susan Collins SuperPAC Buys Ads In Portland, Oregon Not Maine