Democrats are doing everything they can to try to win the critical second round of the Senate in Georgia. Stacey Abrams, a failed Democratic gubernatorial candidate, is trying to use the power of Hollywood to help influence voters in Georgia.
Starting November 27, Abrams will host a weekly briefing “specifically for Hollywood agents, managers, publicists and entertainment officials on how they can best help” in the Georgia Senate second-round races, according to the Hollywood Reporter.
“I am a firm believer in the power of celebrity to silence the noise of politics,” Abrams said while promoting his film “All In: The Fight for Democracy” on November 18. “Whether it’s Georgia, Michigan or Wisconsin. , Arizona or Nevada – states that faced an aggressive voter crackdown in 2016, 2018 – it was an absolutely significant moment when they heard from someone they didn’t see as a politician, which is a community easy to suspect, but those they trusted part of the way they think about how they organize their lives. It really matters. ”
Abrams, who lost in 2018 to Georgia Governor Brian Kemp, has never conceded his electoral loss and attributes his loss to voter suppression.
Abrams is also planning a virtual concert to raise funds for his Fair Fight PAC, an initiative “dedicated to funding, training and supporting voter protection teams in battlefield states across the country.” The “Rock the Runoff” virtual concert will take place on December 3 and will feature artists such as John Legend, Common, Earthgang, Ben Gibbard of Death Cab For Cutie and Indigo Girls. Tickets for the virtual concert range from $ 5 to an expensive $ 25,000 ticket that includes “a pre-event reception with Stacey Abrams and a signed thank you note with pin.”
Fair Fight PAC, which was founded by Abrams in 2018 after losing the election, used celebrities in videos to raise funds for the 2020 election. Fair Fight PAC has enlisted celebrities such as Selena Gomez, Steph Curry. Yara Shahidi, Issa Rae and Keke Palmer.
In the same THR report, Black Voters Matter co-founder LaTosha Brown said there was a “new South rising” because of film production in Georgia.
“We’re trying to tell people not to write off Georgia, that Georgia is on the map,” Brown told The Hollywood Reporter. “We’ve seen this transition – Georgia is the number one place for film productions, so this city has become more internationalized, I think. I think it’s been attractive to bring diverse people into the state. a new South that is rising with the growing presence of the film and entertainment industry. ”
“A lot of celebrities and people from Hollywood came to us being very transparent about not knowing what to do and asking what they could do to help the work on the ground. It has been very refreshing. because I’ve seen in other years where I’ve felt people are doing it just to build their brand, ”Brown continued.“ What I’ve seen is in all areas there there have been people across the industry who have stepped up and I think it made a difference. “
Celebrities such as Kumail Nanjiani, Sophia Bush and Jaden Smith are the co-founders of Win Both Seats, an organization that supports Democratic Senate candidates in Georgia.
George Clooney, Will Smith, Leonardo DiCaprio, Mark Ruffalo, Joaquin Phoenix, Jason Bateman, Mandy Moore, Patricia Arquette and Bradley Whitford, according to The Hill.
The Georgia Senate second round will take place on January 5 and will pit incumbent Kelly Loeffler (right) against candidate Raphael Warnock (R), as well as incumbent David Perdue (right) against candidate Jon Ossoff (R) . If Warnock and Ossoff both win, the Democrats then land a 50-50 tie in the Senate, and the Vice President serves as the tiebreaker.