Political campaign mailers. (Gregory Rec/Staff Photographer)

The gym. The doctor’s office. The living room. The car.

The store. The salon. The restaurant and bar.

Whether out and about or trying to relax at home, Mainers have heard or seen more than their fair share of political ads ahead of the Nov. 3 midterm election headlined by races for the U.S. Senate, House of Representatives and governor. And don’t forget the glossy pamphlets — sometimes multiple in one day — that have arrived in mailboxes.

Mainers’ collective feelings — frustration, annoyance, ignorance or acceptance — cross ideological and demographic lines, putting political advertising in a rare category of grievances that largely foster bipartisan agreement.

That extends to politics in general. The Pew Research Center found in a 2024 survey that 65% of Americans reported feeling “exhausted” most or all of the time when thinking about politics.

“I am so sick, as most Mainers are, of the negative take and dark tone of the visuals of these ads,” said Kat Taylor, 70, an unenrolled voter who lives in Argyle Township in Penobscot County.

The retiree who previously worked at the University of Maine said she is hit with ads throughout her day, from when she tunes into NEWS CENTER Maine in the early morning to when she walks outside to check the mailbox.

Inside a Portland bar on a recent evening, a college football game was on one of the TVs. Nearly every commercial break featured at least one campaign ad.

The refrains are familiar by now, such as the “I’m Troy Jackson” opening line in one of the pro-Jackson ads, or the “Taxin’ Jackson” criticism in an ad from a pro-Republican group. (That negative ad recently and erroneously went on air in Portland, Oregon, instead of Portland, Maine.)

For those wondering if there are actually more ads in front of them this election year in Maine, the answer is yes.

The numbers prove it.

THOUSANDS UPON THOUSANDS OF ADS

The total number of ads that have aired in Maine’s official media markets of Portland-Auburn, Bangor and Presque Isle is dizzying.

According to the advertising tracking insight firm AdImpact, the Portland-Auburn market has seen more than 24,100 political ads air on TV since the week of Aug. 30. The Bangor market has seen more than 18,100 ads air since that week, while the Presque Isle region in northern Maine has seen roughly 2,750 since then.

In the first week of October alone, 5,787 ads aired on TV across the Portland-Auburn market, or about 827 ads each day, according to AdImpact.

This deluge is possible because of record spending on Maine’s highest profile races. Candidates, their affiliated political action committees, the campaign arms of national parties and dark money groups have so far spent and reserved $315 million on ads across various platforms this election cycle in Maine, per AdImpact.

That figure surpasses the state record of around $200 million in 2020 that mostly covered the U.S. Senate race between Sen. Susan Collins and Democrat Sara Gideon.

Maine is the 42nd most populous state but is the 11th most expensive state for political ad spending this cycle, according to AdImpact, which said Tuesday that the total spending will likely get to around $400 million. Republican groups are outspending Democratic groups in Maine and nationally.

But there is some consolation for those tired of all the interruptions. AdImpact initially thought that number would get as high as $490 million in Maine.

DO THE ADS ACTUALLY CONVINCE PEOPLE?

Adding to the frustration of many Mainers: Political advertising is unlikely to move the needle much in any of Maine’s key races.

The gubernatorial race to succeed outgoing Gov. Janet Mills and the 2nd Congressional District contest to succeed U.S. Rep. Jared Golden have certainly drawn attention and outside interest, but ads tied to those elections are relatively few. In the 2nd District, they’re only targeted toward Mainers living in certain regions of the state.

The tight U.S. Senate race between Collins, the Republican seeking a sixth term, and former Maine Senate President Troy Jackson, the Democratic challenger, is a different story.

Screenshots of dueling U.S. Senate ads feature U.S. Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, and former Maine Senate President Troy Jackson. (Screenshots via AdImpact)

Ads upon ads have sought to sway the undecided voters who may decide the Senate contest.

An Axios analysis of dollars spent on cable, broadcast and social media along with estimates for streaming platforms found Maine has the priciest per capita Senate race in the nation, with Republican-aligned groups spending $96.99 for each Maine adult and Democratic-aligned groups spending $69.52.

But polls show the number of voters who haven’t made up their mind in that race is minuscule. And despite all of the time, money and effort that goes into producing these ads, past studies have found the effects of political spots to be small in terms of persuading voters.

The Washington Post and George Mason University’s Schar School of Policy and Government conducted a poll of Maine’s Senate race between Sept. 30 and Oct. 5, finding just 3% of respondents did not pick between Jackson and Collins.

In the 2020 election, about 819,000 voters cast a ballot in the race that saw Collins defy the polls to beat Gideon by a comfortable margin. If roughly 3% of the electorate this year is undecided, and the voting pool stays the same size, campaigns are fighting to reach about 24,500 voters.

DEALING WITH ‘THE NASTINESS’

Steve Hamblen, a 75-year-old unenrolled voter from Sanford, said he is getting inundated with ads and political canvassers at his doorstep — a reality that he said has reaffirmed his belief that the country’s campaign finance system needs reform. The U.S. Supreme Court, however, has removed limits on how much parties and corporations can spend on elections.

“The nastiness really annoys me, but people sit there and swallow it,” Hamblen said in late August. “Make up your own mind. Don’t listen to these political ads and just fall for the one-liners.”

The ads indeed make claims that are false, misleading or only partially backed up by citations in small print that are tough for the average viewer to digest in real time.

“The ads do nothing to sway my opinion. I have never been enrolled in any party and am a critical thinker,” Taylor, the Argyle Township resident, said on a recent weekday, adding that the printed ads in her mailbox “aren’t even good for starting my wood stove or composting.”

Whether the ads end up making a difference in the outcome of the Nov. 3 election is likely unmeasurable. Whether Mainers are ready for them to go away until the next cycle is an easier thing to observe.

Peggy Belkenny, an 83-year-old Democrat from Auburn, said last month she wants candidates and their ads to focus on what they would do to help people if they’re elected to office. And if they don’t?

“We’re gonna put them on a plane and send them all to Siberia,” she said. “One way.”

Staff Writer Randy Billings contributed to this report.