Republican gubernatorial Marty Seifert will be on the air Friday with the first television ad of the 2014 gubernatorial campaign, beating even DFL Gov. Mark Dayton to the punch.
The 30-second spot offers the traditional introduction to a candidate who is not yet a statewide name.
Less traditional is the time slot — during Game Four of the Minnesota Wild versus the Chicago Blackhawks in the Stanley Cup playoffs. Comcast SportsNet will carry the game in the metro area.
“I know it’s early to run an ad on TV, but we have to be out of the box,” Seifert said. “And I thought, ‘Where will we find almost every Minnesotans glued to the TV?’”
Seifert said the ad may air again on other channels prior to the Republican state convention May 30-31, where delegates will endorse candidates for governor and U.S. Senator.
Seifert’s ad placement precedes an equally unconventional media event. On Saturday, he will stage his own fishing opener on Rush Lake, going head-to-head with Dayton’s Governor’s Fishing Opening in the Brainerd Lakes area.
Seifert is one of six candidates for running for the GOP endorsement. A recent poll showed him trailing Dayton by 13 points, about the same distance as the other GOP gubernatorial candidates.