Bloomberg drops $9.5M on political attack ads

LOS ANGELES — Michael Bloomberg’s political action committee has launched a major ad campaign aimed at unseating Republican Reps. Dana Rohrabacher and Steve Knight of California.

The intervention by the former New York City mayor has further tilted California ad spending in Democrats’ favor in the final two weeks before the Nov. 6 midterm election.

Bloomberg’s Independence USA PAC reported spending $4.4 million on advertising against Rohrabacher and $5.1 million to promote Knight’s Democratic challenger, Katie Hill.

It is part of the PAC’s expected $11 million final push for Democrats in tight House races in California, with a small amount going to Mike Levin, who is vying to succeed retiring GOP Rep. Darrell Issa of Vista.

“That’s a jaw-dropping amount of money,” said Rob Stutzman, one of California’s top Republican strategists.

Bloomberg’s spending underscored California’s pivotal role in deciding which party will control the House for the second half of President Donald Trump’s term.

Democrats, who need to gain 23 seats to win the majority, have targeted Rohrabacher, of Costa Mesa, Knight, of Palmdale, and Reps. Mimi Walters of Laguna Beach and Jeff Denham of the San Joaquin Valley. They also hope to capture the open seats of Issa and departing GOP Rep. Ed Royce, of Fullerton.

The unpopularity of Trump, who lost all six districts in 2016, has put every one of those seats in play for Democrats.

The closing burst of advertising from Bloomberg was a reminder that Hill, despite her spectacular success in fundraising, still faces a tough fight to dislodge Knight in conservative-leaning suburbs on the northern outskirts of Los Angeles. Bloomberg’s first TV ad for Hill casts her as a champion for veterans in the state’s 25th Congressional District.