After Schiff boosts a Republican, Porter elevates a different one

Ahead of California's March 5 Senate primary, Democratic Rep. Katie Porter is running digital ads designed to help attorney Eric Early peel conservative votes away from former Major League Baseball player Steve Garvey, a fellow Republican.

"MAGA Republican Eric Early proudly stands with Donald Trump," declares a Porter ad on Facebook, "while Steve Garvey refuses to tell us who he supports. Garvey claimed he might even vote for Joe Biden." Under California's top-two system, all candidates run together on a single primary ballot, with the two highest voter-getters advancing to November.

Porter's effort comes several weeks after the front-runner, Democratic Rep. Adam Schiff, launched his own ad campaign to boost Garvey and deny Porter a place in the general election. However, while Schiff and an allied super PAC have spent millions on television commercials ostensibly attacking Garvey as "too conservative for California," Porter's attempt to elevate Early does not yet appear to have hit the airwaves.