Michigan businessman airs first 2024 ad in early states during Super Bowl

Perry Johnson, a Michigan businessman, is the first Republican to run TV ads in the 2024 presidential contest.

He kicked things off with an ad airing in Iowa and New Hampshire during the Super Bowl. It features "bloated" prominent Democratic political figures like President Joe Biden, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, California Reps. Adam Schiff and Eric Swalwell, and New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.

"Our fat bloated government is choking us with inflation. Milk, eggs, heat: unaffordable," a narrator says at the start of the ad.

Later in the ad, Johnson talks about his plan to reduce the deficit: "If Washington cuts the budget just two percent a year, problem solved."

Johnson spent $175,000 to air the ad in Iowa, according to AdImpact, an ad tracking firm.

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This is his second time running for office. Just last year, he ran for the Republican nomination for governor in Michigan.

He spent almost $6 million on TV ads in that race before he was disqualified, alongside four other candidates, for inconsistencies with the petition signatures he collected to get on the ballot.

Prior to running for office, Johnson was the founder of Perry Johnson Registrars, a firm that works with clients to comply with industry and government standards, and self-identifies as a "quality guru."