Third-party ad buys pile up for Jay Collins

More cash is going into messaging for Lt. Gov. Jay Collins’ campaign for Governor, which has yet to formally launch.

The Florida Fighter political committee has now committed at least $2.78 million for buys in Tampa, Orlando and West Palm Beach through Dec. 9.

The current pitch is to thank the LG for working to lower property taxes, a stated priority of Gov. Ron DeSantis, whose voiceover features in the spot.

“He’s been a man of action. He has delivered conservative wins,” DeSantis says in the ad.

The bulk of the spend is on 3,727 broadcast television buys in Tampa and Orlando, with a limited cable buy in West Palm Beach.

“Our people are very clear in this. They want property tax relief, so let’s do that,” Collins says in the spot.

DeSantis has yet to endorse Collins to succeed him, and the ad sidesteps that by using the Governor’s words to make the same point.

Collins has praised the third-party effort on his behalf.

“I’m very grateful for whatever group that was that put those out there. … We are in this short, final part of wrapping up our decision, and I’m very grateful for that group. It’s very encouraging to see people believe in our message and our approach,” he said at a press conference last month.

Collins especially appreciates the air cover since he sees himself as an alternative to “politicians who pat themselves on the back and put their ego first,” a seeming allusion to U.S. Rep. Byron Donalds, who had more than $31 million banked as of the end of September.

Collins has struggled in public polls of the still-nascent Republican field to succeed DeSantis.

Collins is at 1% in a poll from Victory Insights and at 4% in a survey from St. Pete Polls.