Digital spending reaches record in US midterms

Despite restrictions, online sector looks set to continue strong growth

WASHINGTON - Even as online platforms tightened rules for political ads, digital spending set records in the 2018 US midterm elections and appears poised for further growth in 2020.

Digital media campaign spending rose 2,400 percent from the 2014 midterms to $1.8 billion, roughly 20 percent of the total $8.9 billion in ad spending, according to preliminary estimates from the research firm Borrell Associates.