Rep. Mary Bono Mack released her first television ad of the 2012 season.

The ad — dubbed “Service” — debuted this week as vote-by-mail ballots arrived across the 36th Congressional District.

But it never actually asks for the viewer to cast a vote for the Palm Springs Republican instead of her Democratic challenger, Raul Ruiz.

The entire 30-second segment is a tribute to Bono Mack’s father, Clay Whitaker. He was a World War II veteran who flew 19 missions over Germany as a waist-gunner on a B-17 bomber.

However, the ad contains a notable error. It displays Whitaker’s date of death as 2005; he actually passed away in May 2008.

Bono Mack’s political director, Marc Troast, did not reveal how large the ad buy was. But he told The Desert Sun that the campaign notified the production company about the error and that it is being fixed.