The first general election television commercial in Iowa’s third Congressional district went on the air today. The biographical spot promoting Democratic nominee Staci Appel will run on broadcast and cable tv in the Des Moines and Omaha markets. I’ve posted the video and annotated transcript below. Previously, Appel’s campaign had released only web ads, including one previewing her case against Republican nominee David Young.
I haven’t seen any advertising promoting Young since before the GOP primary. He went into the general election campaign with substantially less cash on hand than Appel. The National Republican Congressional Committee is targeting the IA-03 race but so far has not spent money on broadcast media. This week the NRCC launched a web ad bashing Appel’s record in the Iowa Senate.
Any comments about this race are welcome in this thread. It’s expected to be the most competitive of Iowa’s four Congressional races. Official figures show that as of August 1, the sixteen counties in IA-03 contained 153,285 registered Democrats, 164,984 Republicans, and 156,626 no-party voters.
Appel for Iowa tv ad, “Determination”
My transcript:
Female voice-over: She teaches her kids that hard work and determination will get you through. Staci Appel knows. [Viewer sees footage of Appel in a park with her six children, then with her two teenage sons. The candidate’s name appears on screen.]
She worked her way up from minimum wage to management at an Iowa department store. [Viewer sees photograph of Appel next to pictures from the interior and exterior of a Younkers department store. Words on screen: “Staci Appel: Worked from minimum wage to management”]
Later as a financial consultant, she helped families save for college and retirement. [Camera pans over photographs of Appel with various people of different ages. Words on screen: “Staci Appel: Helped families plan and save”]
As a new state senator, Staci worked across the aisle to cut waste and expand pre-K. [Camera pans over photos of Appel with different people, including one child. Words on screen: “Staci Appel: Worked to cut waste and expand Pre-K”]
Hard work, determination, and plenty of love. [Footage of Appel talking with unidentified women, a man, and kissing a child on the forehead as the voice-over says “plenty of love.”
Appel speaks as viewer sees a photograph of her looking into the camera: I’m Staci Appel, and I approved this message. [Campaign logo and AppelforIowa.com are on the right side of the screen.]
This ad strikes me as a very positive way to start a campaign. Appel has more money to spend than Young, so she might as well define herself before viewers are bombarded with attack ads. Referring to the former state senator as “Staci” reminded me of the “Hillary” messaging from the 2008 Clinton presidential campaign. It’s presumably meant to make the candidate seem more familiar and approachable.
A few other points stood out for me. I liked the way the ad showed a Younkers department store facade. Regardless of political affiliation, people in central Iowa tend to have very positive associations with Younkers. To my knowledge, this chain has never had store in Council Bluffs (the second-largest city in IA-03), although Younkers used to be in a couple of Omaha area shopping malls.
I was surprised that both the voice-over and the visual referred to “pre-K.” Will voters who aren’t parents of young children realize that means preschool? Iowa’s voluntary preschool program for four-year-olds expanded greatly during Appel’s four years in the Iowa Senate.
In case anyone is wondering why this spot features Appel with her children, but not her husband, the answer is that as an Iowa Supreme Court justice, Brent Appel is not allowed to participate in any campaign events.