National Democratic groups are scaling back advertising in Ohio in the latest sign of trouble for Ted Strickland. | Getty More signs of trouble for Strickland in key Ohio Senate race

Ted Strickland is shifting his campaign strategy as national Democrats threaten to bail on him because of his sagging prospects to unseat Sen. Rob Portman (R-Ohio).

The former Ohio governor is canceling ads in Southwest Ohio in the Cincinnati and Dayton markets and shifting them toward the more Democratic areas of Columbus and Cleveland, according to sources familiar with the media buy. The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee and Senate Majority PAC have dramatically scaled back advertising in the state, forcing Strickland to run his own underfunded ad campaign after those groups delayed or canceled TV runs this month.


“We are spending the same amount of money as we planned to over the next two weeks. Just like all campaigns, we shift resources into different media markets throughout the race,” said campaign spokesman David Bergstein.

But Portman had $13 million to Strickland’s nearly $4 million at the end of June, a disparity that will be nearly impossible to make up without outside help — which may never come. Democrats are leaving their October ad reservations in place in case Strickland recovers in the polls, but so far, that isn’t happening.

On Friday, Quinnipiac released a poll showing Strickland losing by 11 points, the second straight poll showing him down by double digits. Strickland hasn’t led since the spring.

Now, the DSCC is considering pulling out of Ohio altogether and allocating its resources to what are now seen as more winnable races in states like North Carolina and Missouri, Democratic sources familiar with party strategy said. A DSCC official declined to comment.

No final decision has been made to abandon the former Ohio governor. Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) said DSCC Executive Director Tom Lopach assured him that the party’s campaign arm is “still there” in Ohio.

“We haven’t given up on Ted Strickland,” Reid said in an interview.

However, Lopach said in a private party meeting this week that the seat is no longer at the top of Democrats' target list, according to The Columbus Dispatch. Initially, the DSCC placed $10 million in TV reservations in Ohio and the Senate Majority PAC made $9.5 million. They've scrapped about a third of that combined amount in recent weeks.

With much of his outside air cover blown, Strickland’s shifting tactics reflect his slim resources. Spending money in the Cincinnati market is less efficient than in other parts of the state, Democrats said, because the market bleeds into Kentucky and Indiana and is relatively expensive. The Strickland campaign said it is increasing its spending in Columbus and Cleveland, which will help shore up Strickland with Democrats. The Quinnipiac poll showed Strickland winning just 82 percent of Democrats in his state.

Washington Democrats tried to play down their party’s recent retreat from the race after Majority PAC canceled $3 million in ads earlier this week, just the latest blow in a series of decisions to withdraw spending.

“You gotta wait and see. Money’s fungible, it moves all over the place, all the time,” said Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), Reid’s presumptive successor and a key steward of the DSCC. “Let’s wait and see. Watch what happens.”

Asked if he was concerned about Strickland's polling, DSCC Chairman Jon Tester of Montana trotted out a campaign classic: “The real poll comes in November. That’s when it counts.”

But at this point, maximizing his limited resources — along with a resounding loss by Donald Trump in the state — appears to be Strickland's only hope.

“Portman has so much more money than anybody has. I mean, he’s raised so much money,” said Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio). “I think it has a lot to do with how Hillary [Clinton] and Trump do in Ohio and I think Hillary will see her lead grow and I think Ted is absolutely in it.”