Former tech executive Andrew Yang fired staffers and Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) canceled advertisements following the Democratic caucuses in Iowa.
“As part of our original plans following the Iowa caucuses, we are winding down our Iowa operations and restructuring to compete as the New Hampshire primary approaches,” campaign manager Zach Graumann said in an emailed statement to The Epoch Times.
“These actions are a natural evolution of the campaign post-Iowa, same as other campaigns have undertaken, and Andrew Yang is going to keep fighting for the voices of the more than 400,000 supporters who have donated to the campaign and placed a stake in the future of our country.”
Yang is campaigning in New Hampshire ahead of the Feb. 11 primaries, as are most of the other candidates.
Warren, meanwhile, cancelled ads in two early voting states after appearing to finish in third in Iowa. Warren’s campaign pulled over $350,000 worth of ads in Nevada and South Carolina that were slated to run from Feb. 17 to Feb. 23, according to Advertising Analytics.
Warren still has ads slated to run in Nevada, South Carolina, and New Hampshire—where the next three Democratic caucuses and primaries will be held. One of the ads showed former President Barack Obama praising Warren.
Most candidates sent out emails asking supporters for donations after Iowa. Warren’s campaign said that the numbers from Iowa looked good but said the campaign was hurt by the delay in releasing the results.
“Since they were announced today instead of last night, we didn’t get a big night of exciting news coverage about them (or the late-night boost in fundraising that usually comes with it),” the campaign said.
Former Vice President Joe Biden, 77, also cut ad spending in South Carolina by about $119,000, but at the same time added about $50,000 to ad buys in Nevada, Advertising Analytics said. Biden was in fourth in Iowa, a dismal finish after some projects suggested he could win.
“I’m not going to sugarcoat it: We took a gut punch in Iowa,” Biden told supporters in New Hampshire this week. Biden’s campaign urged supporters to donate on Thursday, with campaign manager Greg Schultz telling them: ”I know you’re probably tired of getting fundraising emails. Trust us, we get it. But, after going through the expensive caucuses in Iowa, it’s absolutely necessary that we replenish our resources.”
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), 78, planned to pour $5.5 million into new or expanded ad campaigns after pulling in $25 million in January alone. The haul was more than his rivals managed to raise in any quarter of 2019.
Fresh off strong showings in Iowa, both Pete Buttigieg, the 38-year-old former South Bend mayor, and Sanders asked supporters for more money on Wednesday.
“The results out of Iowa show us winning the most votes. So we need to keep it up. We need to push and win New Hampshire. So far, polls have had us ahead. But that means the political establishment has us in their sights,” a campaign email from Sanders said.
“They spent hundreds of thousands to slow us down in Iowa. Joe Biden’s super PAC already bought nearly $1 million in ads in New Hampshire. Who knows what’s next.”
