utside groups have poured tens of millions of dollars into Iowa to boost — or knock — the Republican presidential candidates.
Since the start of 2023, super PACs have spent more than $85 million on TV ads across the nine media markets that cover some portion of Iowa, according to a POLITICO analysis of data from AdImpact, which tracks political advertising. The groups have spent $136 million in overall independent expenditure spending in the state, according to FEC filings. That far exceeds the $32 million in outside spending in Iowa that Republicans reported to the FEC in 2016.