After months of relentless mudslinging, fearmongering, ominous voiceovers, creepy black-and-white AI footage and the nastiest election attack ads Ohioans have ever witnessed, Cleveland advertising agency Brokaw has officially declared Wednesday, November 4, 2026, “No More Political Ads Day.” The agency is celebrating with a digital billboard and social media campaign across its hometown of Cleveland featuring messages of sweet advertising relief.
The campaign arrives with heavy ammunition. Ohio’s U.S. Senate race alone drew more than $500 million in political advertising this cycle, according to ad-tracking firm AdImpact, making it one of only three non-presidential races in U.S. history to cross that mark. “No matter who you voted for, we can all agree on one thing: if we never hear the words ‘too extreme for Ohio’ again, it’ll be too soon,” said Gregg Brokaw, co-owner of Brokaw.
The creative leans into the relief. One Cleveland billboard reads “Unmute your everything,” while another declares “Smell ya later, mudslinging.” Social graphics carry lines such as “Your doomscroll is saved,” and a series pokes affectionate fun at the return of normal advertising: “Ever think you’d miss Liberty Liberty?” Brokaw frames the stunt as a celebration of “the 2% of ads that people actually like” — the agency’s own definition of advertising that audiences welcome rather than tolerate.
“It’s a new, non-political-ad day, America,” added Gregg Brokaw. “We never thought we’d say this, but bring back pharmaceutical ads listing 45 seconds of side effects. Bring back the personal injury lawyers vowing revenge. Heck, Liberty Biberty, too. We’ve missed you, buddy!”
Brokaw, founded in 1992, is an independent marketing, advertising and social content production firm specializing in helping brands “rise above the blah blah.” Clients include GE Lighting, Sherwin-Williams, Summa Health, American Greetings, The University of Akron and the Law School Admission Council. The agency is a former Ad Age Small Agency of the Year recipient and was recently honored with a Gold National ADDY — the only Ohio agency to receive one this year. It is owned and operated by brothers Tim and Gregg Brokaw, headquartered in downtown Cleveland’s Warehouse District.
For the OOH industry, the campaign is a reminder of the medium’s cultural power during election cycles. Political spending dominates outdoor inventory in battleground states, crowding out commercial advertisers and testing audience patience. Brokaw’s stunt positions digital billboards as a venue for commentary rather than pure selling — a tactic that generates earned media, social sharing and goodwill far beyond the value of the physical placements. The timing, the day after the U.S. election, gives the message immediate cultural resonance, and the humor keeps the brand on the right side of a politically divided audience.
The stunt also carries commercial logic for Brokaw. As a mid-sized independent agency competing with larger networks, the campaign demonstrates the firm’s creative firepower to potential clients at a moment when political advertising has dominated public attention. Earned coverage of the billboards and social graphics extends the reach of a modest media buy, delivering an outsized share of voice that the agency can translate into new business conversations.
Why it matters: Brokaw’s post-election digital billboard stunt in Cleveland — backed by Ohio’s record $500 million Senate race ad spend — shows how OOH can generate cultural buzz through timely, witty creative, and highlights the growing public appetite for relief from political ad saturation.
Source: PR Newswire
