State Candidates Paid $1.2 Million For Radio-TV Ads

WASHINGTON - Political candidates in Michigan paid $1.2 million for radio-TV advertising during last year's elections, a survey by the Federal Communications Commission shows. Gov. William G. Milliken and his Democrat opponent, Sander M. Levin, each spent j a quarter-million dollars to lead all candidates. Sen. Philip A. Hart, DMich., purchased $144,682 worth of air time in winning a third term. His opponent, Mrs. Lenore Romney, spent $133,635. But $88,657 of this uas used in the hotly contested GOP Senate primary, leaving her general election campaign short of money. Michigan Democrats outspent Republicans $503,804 to $497,017, the FCC study discloses. This is in line with the survey's national trend which saw Democrats pay out $26 i million against $21.7 million for the GOP. In the 1968 presidential election, howeve r , Republicans had the I spending edge. The survey covered broadI cast spending by candidates I for national, state and local I office in 1970. Minor party candidates in I Michigan and those running I in nonpartisan elections spent I $166,191 to raise the state I total to $1,167,012. I The FCC polled each of the I state's 27 televisión and 236 I radio stations and received Iclose to 100 per cent I response. A computer printout of the I survey provides some of the I most detailed information on I electronic campaign spending I ever assembled. Radio-TV spending by congressional candidates ranged from the $18,339 spent by Rep. Garry E. Brown, RI Schoolcraft, to $19 paid by I Gerald J. Parent of Bay City, I Democratie candidate in the I llth District. Reps. James G. O'Hara, liD-Utica, and William D. Ford, D-Taylor, did no radioI TV advertising, according to I the survey. Other Detroit área DemoI cratic incumbents spent very I little for broadeast exposure, I possibly because Detroit TV I stations reach several million viewers who are not their I constituents. This could make TV advertising prohibitively high for a Detroit área candidate. A campaign finance bill approved by the Senate Commerce Committee last month would restrict radio-TV spending to 5 cents for every person 18 years of age and up. This would apply only to campaigns for federal office. Had this ceiling been in force last year only one candidate would have had to curtail his electronic campaign. Rep. Brown of the 3rd District spent about $2,800 above the proposed limit. His Democratie opponent, Richard A. Ensle, spent $14,833, which was below the limit. Their combined outlay of $33,22 was surpassed only by the contests for governor and U.S. senator. The survey documented the financial drain a candidate faces when he has strong opposition in the primary election. Although Milliken and Levin each budgeted the same amount for radio-TV, Levin used $68,587 to win the primary in a field of four. Milliken spent only $787 in the primary. Thus, in the November runoff, Milliken poured $256,299 into radio-TV ads while Levin spent $186,323. Milliken's total broadcast spending was $257,086 against $257,910 for Levin, according to the survey. In the U.S. Senate race, it was the GOP candidate who faced a dollar drain in the primary. The survey shows that Mrs. Romney spent $88,657 to defeat conservative Republican Robert J. Huber in the primary. Huber spent $63,481. In the general election Mrs. Romney spent $44,978 for a total of $133,635. Sen. Hart purchased $789 worth of air time in the primary election and $143,893 in the runoff . Seven weeks before the general election Hart and Mrs. Romney agreed to a $170,755 ceiling on advertising, including newspapers and billboards. Judging from their radio-TV advertising, they s t a y e d under that amount. Many incumbent congressmen had modest radio-TV i budgets. There may be two reasons for this: they come I from safe districts and they I get exposure over radio and I TV between elections. The FCC also asked I tions to report how much free I air time they gave candidates I during election campaigns. Almost all outstate Michigan I candidates got some free I time. Here are the radio-TV outlays in the general election b y outstate congressional candidates: 2nd District - Rep. Marvin [ L. Esch, R-Ann Arbor, $1,273; I Democrat Michael Stillwagon I of Ann Arbor $385. I 3rd District - Rep. Garry I E . Brown, R-Schoolcraft, I $18,339; Democrat Richard A. I Ensle of Kalamazoo, $14,833. I 4th District- Rep. Edward j Hutchinson, R-Fennville, $2,-1 515; Democrat David R. Mc-I Cormack of Niles, $2,267. I 5th District Rep. Gerald R. I Ford, Grand Rapids, $8,819; I Democrat Jean McKee of Grand Rapids, $6,263. 6th District - Rep. Charles - i m E. Chamberlain, R-East Lansint, $4,267;' Democrat John A. Cihon of Jackson, $2,096. 7th District - Rep. Donald W. Riegle Jr., R-Flint, $7,152; Democrat Richard J. Ruhala of Flint, $3,442. 8th District - Rep. James Harvey, R-Saginaw, $3,284; Democrat Richard E. Davis i of Meivin, $445. 9th District - Rep. Guy V a n d e r Jagt, R-Cadillac I $3,055; Democrat Charles! Arthur Rogers of Muskegon, I $9,097. J lOth District - Rep. Elford A. Cederberg, R-Bay City, $2,783; Democrat Gerald J. Parent of Bay City, $19. llth District - Rep. Philip E . R u p p e , R-Houghton, $10,050 ; Democrat Nine Green ofGladstone, $10,755.