Georgia's highly-publicized special election between Democrat Jon Ossoff and Republican Karen Handel will shatter the spending record for a House race, Politico reports.
"Everybody has shoved their chips into the middle of the table, and neither side can afford to lose," said former GOP Rep. Tom Davis of the $29.7 million so far spent in TV ads.
The previous recorded high of $29.6 million was set in 2012 in Palm Beach County, Fla., by former GOP Rep. Allen West, former Democratic Rep. Patrick Murphy and outside groups, according to the Center for Responsive Politics. The $29.7 million total in Georgia only includes money spent on TV ads and the runoff Election Day is still six weeks away.
"It's entirely possible that by the time the books are closed on this race, there will be over $40 million spent in the special and in the runoff," Chip Lake, a Republican strategist who works in Georgia, told Politico. "I'm at a loss for words."
Ossoff, 30, a surprisingly popular candidate in a deep red state, nearly won the contest outright in Atlanta’s 6th congressional district when he finished with 48 percent of the vote in an April special election — he needed 50 percent.
A poll Friday showed him ahead of Handel, 50 percent to 48 percent.
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