Steve Botsford for US Senate US Inactive
Botsford for Illinois
Ad copy
I ran for Chicago City Council in 2023 because I love my city and I didn’t think it was living up to its potential. When I lost, I was hurt and didn’t think I would run for public office again. Then came 2024, and history sentenced America to another four years of Donald Trump. I was angry at the establishment for letting it happen. And I was disappointed in my fellow Americans for trusting that man with the world’s greatest democracy yet again. After the election, I threw myself back into work and focused on the things I could control. When Senator Durbin retired, I was excited to see which of the many great leaders across this state would rise to the challenge and represent Illinois in the United States Senate. It’s fair to say I was disappointed with our options. How could the state that produced giants like Adlai Stevenson and Barack Obama not find a leader from the next generation to stand up in this trying time? We cannot keep sending the same cookie-cutter politicians to Washington and expect things to turn themselves around. The same politicians who send identical fundraising emails and give the same monotone speeches written by high-priced consultants… are not going to bring the change we need. The ones who’ve spent their careers refusing to upset the status quo, who always find an excuse for why “now” is their time, no matter what’s happening in the real world… are not going to save us. We need different kinds of leaders for these very different times. Leaders unafraid to stand up to the special interests that pour money into our elections to make sure nothing changes. Leaders who care more about getting things done than getting reelected. Leaders who aren’t afraid to start a fight they’re expected to lose. So I’ve decided to embark on a long-shot campaign to be that kind of leader. If you think Washington needs real change, I hope you’ll stand with me. https://www.botsfordforillinois.com/
↗ View in Meta Ad Library (the live creative — image/video/layout)
Performance proxies
| Overall score | 48.7/100 |
| Spend / Reach / Long. / Eff. | 27.6 · 87.0 · 1.7 · 78.5 |
| Spend range | USD 600–699 |
| Impressions | 250,000 – 299,999 |
| CPM (≈ $/1k impr) | USD 2.36 |
| Est. audience size | — |
| Days live | 7 (2026-03-11 → 2026-03-18) |
| Created | 2026-03-11 |
| Creative variants | 1 body · 0 headline |
| Platforms | facebook, instagram |
| Languages | en |
| Candidate | IL — Steve Botsford |
| Surfaced by | “senate:Steve Botsford” |
🧠 AI analysis
| Issue | candidate character bio |
| Framing | positive candidate |
| Message type | persuasion |
| Emotional appeal | anger |
| Production tier | semi pro |
| Who pictured | candidate |
| Symbols | none |
| Call to action | none |
| Standout element | Candidate staring directly into camera against dark neutral backdrop with raw confessional tone |
| Tactic | The ad uses a personal vulnerability-to-motivation narrative arc — from losing a city council race to being galvanized by Trump's re-election — to build authentic relatability and channel voter anger into candidate credibility. |
Where it ran (delivery by region)
| Illinois | 100.0% |
Who saw it (delivery)
| 18-24 · female | 17.9% |
| 45-54 · unknown | 0.0% |
| Unknown · female | 0.0% |
| 65+ · unknown | 0.0% |
| 65+ · male | 1.1% |
| 65+ · female | 0.6% |
| 55-64 · unknown | 0.0% |
| 55-64 · male | 2.0% |
| 55-64 · female | 1.0% |
| 45-54 · male | 4.1% |
| 18-24 · male | 22.8% |
| 45-54 · female | 1.8% |
| 35-44 · unknown | 0.1% |
| 35-44 · male | 9.2% |
| 35-44 · female | 3.8% |
| 25-34 · unknown | 0.4% |
| 25-34 · male | 23.5% |
| 25-34 · female | 11.1% |
| 18-24 · unknown | 0.5% |
| Unknown · male | 0.0% |
