Last night, the Associated Press said Mitt Romney "scored his first major primary victory Tuesday in his native Michigan, a win he desperately needed to give his weakened candidacy new life." Romney himself is quoted as saying "It's a victory of optimism over Washington-style pessimism," but is that what really won him the Michigan Primary.

According to a media release by the Michigan Campaign Finance Network, "Romney spent over $2 million, nearly three-times as much as Arizona Senator John McCain, and more than four-times as much as former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee." It is interesting that the top three candidates for the GOP in paid political advertising would also be the top 3 vote getters in Michigan's Primary.

The Michigan Campaign Finance Network provides numbers for paid advertising by TV markets and we decided to visit the stations ourselves and give readers a breakdown by station and candidate. Anyone can do this by asking to view their political file, which is a requirement by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC).

WOODTV/WOTV/WXSP

Romney $162,425.00
McCain $90,255.00
Huckabee $21,975.00
Club for Growth $20,075.00

WZZM 13

Romney $81,040.00
McCain $30,580.00
Huckabee $10,545.00
Club for Growth $6,395.00

WXMI 17

Romney $86,155.00
McCain $18,605.00
Huckabee $3,905.00

Clear Channel Radio Stations

Paul $13,224.00
Romney $10,484.00
McCain $7,188.00
Huckabee $2,570.00

As you can see from the Grand Rapids-based broadcast market, Romney bought more airtime on TV stations than the other GOP candidates. WOOD TV/WOTV/WXSP was the station where more total money was spent on political ads, not surprising since they have had the highest ratings for several years in a row. The group Club for Growth ran what were essentially anti-Huckabee ads and nearly matched the political ad spending by Huckabee on both WZZM 13 and WOODTV/WOTV/WXSP.

We also went to look at the political file at Clear Channel Stations, since they own seven channels in the greater Grand Rapids area. This is the only major broadcaster in West Michigan that Romney didn't spend the top amount. Ron Paul was number one in buying airtime and that might be due to his campaign recognizing who the audience is, with WOOD AM, WOOD FM, and WTKG being the stations that Paul ran ads on. These stations feature Rush Limbaugh, Michael Savage, Dave Ramsey, Glenn Beck and Phil Hendrie - all of which may appeal to Paul's Libertarian rhetoric.

Between now and the November elections, it will be important to watch the political ad spending for candidates and where they stand in the polls, since exposure generated by ads will boost name recognition. On the flip-side, it is equally important to watch which broadcasters candidates chose to run the bulk of their ads with. Local TV stations will make millions before the November elections, especially once the nominations for both the Democrats and Republicans are set. In the last presidential election, WOOD TV 8 station manager Diane Kniowksi was quoted saying, "If they keep up this spending week to week, it will be a slugfest, a real dogfight, and the ad buys will continue to increase. Of course it's great. It's a windfall of revenues" (Grand Rapids Press, May 2, 2004).