A new analysis from Edison Research’s Share of Ear study highlights the importance of ad-supported audio as political campaigns gear up for the 2026 U.S. election cycle, finding that 81% of voting-age Americans are reached by ad-supported audio every day.

Among Republicans, AM/FM radio and SiriusXM’s ad-supported spoken-word channels deliver the strongest reach. AM/FM Radio posts an index of 117, indicating Republicans are 17% more likely than the average adult to listen on a typical day. Ad-supported spoken-word programming on SiriusXM ranks even higher with an index of 157.

Democrats show slightly above-average usage of several digital audio platforms, including ad-supported streaming music (index 101), music videos on YouTube (103) and SiriusXM Radio (103). Podcasting is the most efficient platform for reaching Democratic voters, with an index of 107.

Share of Ear® is survey data, not download or subscriber data. While individual audio sources have their own measures, Share of Ear® surveys listeners to capture ALL of their daily listening in one dataset, providing a level playing field for all audio sources. It is the only audio survey in the U.S. to provide analysis of all audio consumption.