Democrat Morgan Carroll reserved just under $1.2 million in fall television advertising at the end of the week, bringing to $12.75 million the broadcast and cable TV spending set for the 6th Congressional District race between Carroll and incumbent Republican U.S. Rep. Mike Coffman, The Colorado Statesman has learned.

Carroll’s reservation nearly matches the $1.2 million the Coffman campaign reserved two months ago for the run-up to the general election, although Coffman has also been spending modest sums on a pair of targeted ads – one with versions in both English and Spanish – since the beginning of July.

“We’re really excited about the ad buy,” Carroll, a state senator, told The Statesman in an interview. “It is going to be an incredibly strong, robust way to introduce who I am, who I’m fighting for and what I’m fighting for.”

Carroll’s campaign manager, Jennifer Donovan, said in a statement, “With this initial media reservation, we are getting the word out about Morgan’s record of achieving real results for Colorado families. We are so excited to share Morgan’s story with the people of the 6th District, and this buy puts us in a strong position to win this November.”

A spokeswoman for the Coffman campaign didn’t respond to a request for comment for this story.

As expected, it looks like Democratic and Republican party committees and PACs will account for the biggest TV spending in the race, pegged as one of the most competitive congressional district contests in the country this year.

The ad deluge in the suburban metro-area district is scheduled to start in six weeks during the week of Monday, Sept. 19, although media experts stress that reservations aren’t set in stone and can change on a dime. Both campaigns, too, have said they plan to increase their ad buys as the election approaches and they determine more precise targeting strategies.

In total, ad reservations on Carroll’s side – including spending by the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee and the Democratic-aligned House Majority PAC – total $6,671,578 for the weeks before the election, according to media tracking data made available to The Statesman. Reservations on Coffman’s side for the same period – including those made by the National Republican Congressional Committee – add up to $6,077,848.

Both campaigns and groups supporting or opposing them are also spending heavily on web-based advertising, but that isn’t reflected in the media totals, which just include broadcast and cable television spending.

The DCCC has reserved $3,276,766 for advertising spending in weeks before the election, HMP has reserved $2,177,618, and the NRCC has reserved $4,780,818. (The DCCC is spending $10,084 this week on a cable ad that responds to about $25,000 in spending by the Coffman campaign for an ad distancing himself from Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump.)

According to campaign finance reports filed on June 30, Coffman was well ahead of Carroll in total fundraising, with $2,304,106 raised this cycle and $1,635,926 on hand. Carroll reported raising $1,373,048 for the same period and had $866,857 on hand. The conservative Americans for Prosperity organization said it has spent $62,384 against Carroll through the last reporting period, although AFP officials have said the group intends to spend well into six figures opposing the Democrat.

– ernest@coloradostatesman.com