Laura Fine and Daniel Biss at a candidate forum in February. Credit: Richard Cahan
Two of the leading candidates running in the 9th Congressional District primary are currently headed in different directions when it comes to TV ads.
Evanston Mayor Daniel Biss has started the final month of the campaign by buying his first advertisements on broadcast television, according to public filings. On the flip side, Biss opponent and state Sen. Laura Fine (9th District) halted her own spending just before a new super PAC started dropping six-figure sums on her behalf.
While candidates don’t have to report their spending again until early March, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) requires broadcast TV channels and cable providers to disclose political ad placements as they’re ordered. These filings show that Biss’ campaign ordered its first over-the-air TV ads on Friday, paying about $58,000 for 30-second spots that will air on NBC 5, ABC 7, TheU 26 and FOX 32 from Feb. 17 to 23.
Fine is the only other candidate in the 9th District race to have bought broadcast TV ads, though she is not doing so anymore. However, that does not mean she will disappear from TV ads.
Biss previously spent over $140,000 on cable ads that ran Jan. 13 through Feb. 9, after which there are no FCC fillings for further purchases. A campaign spokesperson did not respond to questions about what ad would be placed in the broadcast purchases, and whether new ad buys will also go on cable, streaming or other digital platforms.
Outside of Biss’ campaign, he is also backed by outside spending from 314 Action Fund, a STEM-focused super PAC that has publicly endorsed him. The group has reported spending nearly $360,000 on ads supporting Biss as of Sunday.
FCC filings show Fine’s campaign spent over $900,000 to place TV ads on both broadcast and cable between Jan. 6 and Feb. 1. This sum represents more than 60% of the $1.44 million Fine had on hand entering 2026, the most of any candidate in the race.
But entering February, Fine stopped spending, with no new TV ad buys stuff since the month began. This stop lines up closely with the start-up of a brand new super PAC called “Elect Chicago Women,” which as of Sunday has logged nearly $2.2 million in TV ad buys supporting both Fine and former U.S. Rep. Melissa Bean, who is running for her old seat in the 8th Congressional District.
The 30-second ad supporting Laura Fine’s bid for Congress created by Elect Chicago Women, which the super PAC has placed on major broadcast TV channels.
Super PACs are allowed to raise and spend unlimited funds to support or oppose candidates but are barred from directly coordinating with candidates on the ad content and other details. Nevertheless, Elect Chicago Women’s ad aligns closely with content shown on an earlier version of Fine’s “media center” webpage, which had a list of talking points promoting her candidacy surrounded by a red box.
This indirect message coordination, literally named “red boxing,” is a somewhat common practice among Democratic candidates to skirt around direct coordination ban. Biss and fellow leading candidate Kat Abughazaleh have red box webpages of their own, and 314 Action closely followed the content of Biss’ page in mail ads sent in late January.
But the timing of Fine’s stop is also significant because all donations Elect Chicago Women and other super PACs receive on and after Feb. 1 are “dark money,” meaning they aren’t required to disclose the source until after Election Day on March 17. Elect Chicago Women was formed on Jan. 27, making all money received after its first five days dark money.
The RoundTable asked Fine’s campaign why it stopped buying TV ads at the start of February, and to explain how the close timing with Elect Chicago Women’s start of ad spending might lead some to believe there was coordination.
A spokesperson responded that the campaign “cannot and does not coordinate with outside groups,” before levying an unprompted attack against Biss on connections to former Illinois House Speaker Mike Madigan and 314 Action taking AIPAC funds in 2024. These points closely matches negative talking points on the current version of Fine’s red box webpage, signaling these same points will likely be used in attack ads soon.
The spokesperson did not immediately respond to an email asking again why the campaign stopped buying TV ads.
Elect Chicago Women and another recently-created super PAC, “Affordable Chicago Now,” are reported to be funded by the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), which has supported Fine’s campaign with fundraising but has not publicly endorsed her. Biss and Abughazaleh have repeatedly called attention to Elect Chicago Women to attack Fine, as both highlight that AIPAC has taken donations from Republican donors to spend big in Democratic primaries.
Monthly-reporting super PACs must report their January donations and spending by Feb. 20. Final pre-primary reports of the same information from candidates are due March 5.
Mail ballots for the primary started to be sent out on Feb. 5, and local early voting at the Robert Crown Community Center will start March 2.
Biss and Fine taking opposite approaches to TV ads in February is from Evanston RoundTable, Evanston’s most trusted source for unbiased, in-depth journalism.
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