Shevrin Jones made history as the first LGBTQ+ Black person to serve in the Florida State Legislature. With digital strategy from MDW communications and DSPolitical’s programmatic advertising technology, Shevrin Jones made history once again emerging victorious from a crowded Democratic primary field to win the election for Florida State Senate District 35.

With limited time in a competitive primary, the Jones Campaign needed to reach their voters quickly and effectively. And, because of the public health crisis, aggressive in-person canvassing and consistent live campaign events simply were not an option.

MDW Communications and DSPolitial’s award-winning Managed Service team ran targeted digital ads on Connected TV (CTV) and Private Marketplace Video (PMP), targeting the exact voters Jones needed to win—those with a partisanship score that leaned Democrat and had a high voter turnout score.

With completion rates for CTV at 97%, these ad placements allowed Shevrin Jones to meet voters on the biggest and most impactful screens in the house while they used streaming platforms like Apple TV and Roku. Jones was the only candidate to use CTV in the primary, giving him an advantage in reaching voters both online and on the television screen.

The primary audience for these ads were solid blue voters who were likely to show up at the polls. Jones needed to get his name and message in front of them again and again to build rapport.

In the end, the aggressive digital ad campaign helped Jones succeed in a crowded Democratic primary field by identifying, reaching, and persuading reliable Democrats to support his campaign. Shevrin Jones’s election demonstrates the power of online voter targeting, especially during an incredibly difficult period for down-ballot candidates.