ABC Vancouver spent 100 times more on social media ads than Green party rivals
Analysis of Meta spending in final 90 days before Oct. 17 election shows ABC invested $62,000 while top challenger Green party spent less than $500.
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ABC Vancouver spent over $62,000 on social media ads across Meta-owned platforms in the 90 days leading to the Oct. 17 municipal election, according to a Postmedia analysis of political ad spending—a sum that dwarfs all competitors.
The Green party of Vancouver spent less than $500 on paid ads in the same period, less than 1 per cent of ABC's investment. Dominique Damian-Wallace of the Green party campaign said the party relied on organic social media strategy rather than paid promotion, noting paid ads "tend to get very short actual view times, often just a few seconds." The Greens instead invested in staff, get-out-the-vote efforts, and ground operations.
Other parties' spending fell between these extremes: Vancouver Liberals (led by Kareem Allam) spent about $25,000; Vote Vancouver (led by Rebecca Bligh) spent just over $21,000; and COPE, TEAM, and OneCity each spent between roughly $6,000 and $8,000.
But spending did not translate to engagement. A Pete Fry video posted to Davie Street generated over 100,000 views with no paid promotion. Ken Sim's video on X garnered roughly 100 engagement indicators total. Meanwhile, a COPE councillor Sean Orr post generated more than twice the engagement of Sim's video. Postmedia found that money spent on ads did not necessarily translate into meaningful online engagement—and online attention did not necessarily translate into real-world votes. ABC Vancouver had relatively little online ad presence in the 2022 election but won with a significant majority. Kathleen Reid of ABC Vancouver said the party's campaign budget of over $2.5 million generally splits between staffing, get-out-the-vote, and advertising. Damian-Wallace noted the Greens have historically had the lowest dollars-per-vote ratio among municipal parties.
The facts
How much did ABC Vancouver spend on Meta ads before the election?
ABC Vancouver spent over $62,000 on social media ads across Meta-owned platforms in the 90 days leading to the October 17 municipal election.
How much did the Green party spend on paid social media ads?
The Green party of Vancouver spent less than $500 on paid ads during the same 90-day period before the October 17 election.
How did ABC Vancouver allocate its campaign budget?
ABC Vancouver's campaign budget of over $2.5 million generally splits between staffing, get-out-the-vote efforts, and advertising.
Did higher ad spending lead to more online engagement?
No. Postmedia found that money spent on ads did not necessarily translate into meaningful online engagement, and online attention did not necessarily translate into real-world votes.
