BUFFALO, N.Y. -- The advertisers for Monday Night Football are certainly aware there's an election Tuesday. Turns out the candidates are too.
"I have a feeling we're going to see some presidential ads tonight," Erie County GOP Chair Nick Langworthy said.
It's historically one of the most-watched programs on television, and on the night before America casts its vote for president, it's a chance for candidates to reinforce their message.
"Campaign professionals are among the most paranoid people I've ever met and if they have money, they're going to spend it and they're going to try everything. We don't really have great data on what works best, at least in terms of something like cost per vote," said Jacob Neiheisel, an assistant professor of political science at the University at Buffalo.
In Western New York, the game has particular importance with the Buffalo Bills playing. Langworthy said the committee purchased ads for District Attorney candidate Joe Treanor, expecting to reach about 1/3 of the population.
"There's never in my experience been an audience that large, that's so heavy on Western New York in one channel the night before. It's an opportunity that's just a little too enticing not to take," he said.
Buying television spots on Monday night, however, isn't necessarily an automatic touchdown.
"Whoever is buying the ads is going to have to had raised a lot of money because they've had to sustain themselves for the last 12-14 days, in addition, buy an ad that costs a lot more than they've been doing," Erie County Democratic Committee Chairman Jeremy Zellner said.
The committee has shifted it's resources to deliver a win for Hillary Clinton in swing states but Zellner does believe local candidates will be spent some of their own money.
"Although everybody's tired of politics right now and they want tomorrow's election to be over, a last message to them is important," he said.
As for national politics, a football fan tired of the election's negative tone was probably out of luck.
"It fits with a strategy where you try to paint your opponent in a particular light and then you drive that home, right up until when maybe a few last-minute people are making their decisions," Neiheisel said.