Harris campaign announces $50 million ad buy ahead of DNC

The Harris campaign on Tuesday announced it would spend $50 million on advertising in the weeks ahead of the Democratic National Convention and unveiled its first ad since the vice president became the party's likely nominee.

The campaign announced the ad titled "Fearless" will be the first in a series of paid media efforts ahead of the convention, which begins Aug. 19 in Chicago.

The 60-second ad touts Harris' record as a prosecutor and California attorney general, as well as her work as vice president in the Biden administration.

"This campaign is about who we fight for," Harris says in the ad. "We believe in a future where every person has the opportunity not just to get by, but to get ahead. Where every senior can retire with dignity. 

"But Donald Trump wants to take our country backward. To give tax breaks to billionaires and big corporations and end the Affordable Care Act," she says. "But we are not going back."

The ad will air on local and national television stations across battleground states, the campaign said. It will air during Olympics coverage, and during shows like Big Brother, The Daily Show, The Simpsons and The Bachelorette.

“Throughout her career as a courtroom prosecutor, Attorney General, United States Senator, and now as Vice President, Kamala Harris has always stood up to bullies, criminals and special interests on behalf of the American people – and she’s beaten them," Harris campaign chair Jen O'Malley Dillon said in a statement. "She’s uniquely suited to take on Donald Trump, a convicted felon who has spent his entire life ripping off working people, tearing away our rights, and fighting for himself."

The ad marks the Harris campaign's first foray into advertising since the vice president became the likely Democratic nominee roughly one week ago following President Biden's decision to drop out of the race.

Since then, the Harris campaign has raised more than $200 million and seen an outpouring of grassroots support among Democrats rejuvenated by her candidacy.

Polls still show former President Trump narrowly leading nationally and in several battleground states, however, and Harris acknowledged over the weekend she remains an underdog in the race.