ATLANTA (AP) 鈥� A beer garden near downtown Atlanta filled for a recent event hosted by Democratic U.S. Sen. Raphael Warnock aimed at Latino voters.
Some said they came to seek Warnock, who is seeking reelection in on Nov. 8 against Republican challenger Herschel Walker. But others came to see a particularly high-profile Latino who would be speaking on Warnock's behalf 鈥� composer, actor and filmmaker Lin-Manuel Miranda.
鈥淲ho I鈥檓 really here to see is Lin-Manuel Miranda, because I鈥檓 a really big fan of his,鈥� said Camilla Estrada, of Atlanta, who described herself as liberal and said she plans to vote for Warnock.
Celebrity endorsements in politics are nothing new, and it's unclear how much influence they have, said Mark Harvey, a management professor at the University of St. Mary in Leavenworth, Kansas. And some of the biggest fans at Miranda鈥檚 appearance Wednesday night, like 7-year-old Sophie Hinsbi, clutching a book from the animated Disney musical 鈥淓ncanto,鈥� were too young to vote. But that hasn鈥檛 stopped politicians from showcasing celebrities, hoping to reach voters who may be on the fence.
Georgia Democrats spent the first week of the state's 19-day early voting period in frantic activity, as they implore supporters to vote in advance. Warnock and gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams each held multiple events a day. Miranda also appeared with Abrams at a restaurant in suburban Lawrenceville on Wednesday, while the Abrams campaign later rolled out a recorded chat
Almost 575,000 people had voted in Georgia by the end of Thursday, roughly on pace with the 2020 presidential election when 5 million votes were cast in the state, buoying Democratic hopes that a big turnout might help them.
Celebrities have also gone directly into politics in 2022, including Walker, a University of Georgia football star. When Walker interacts with voters, fans line up to implore him to sign jerseys and even commemorative soda bottles from the Bulldogs鈥� 1980 national championship. There鈥檚 also Pennsylvania Republican Senate candidate Mehmet Oz,
They're following the footsteps of others, including former President Donald Trump. Harvey said his research showed Trump was particularly effective at dominating news coverage in 2016, and noted that he had heard a lot about Walker despite living far from Georgia.
鈥淲hen you get a celebrity in there, you鈥檙e probably going to get a whole lot more free coverage," Harvey said.
In Atlanta, Miranda noted that he had a history of supporting Warnock, mentioning an online fundraiser that the original cast of 鈥淗amilton鈥� held for Warnock and fellow Democrat Jon Ossoff in 2020, as the two were pushing toward January 2021 runoff victories that gave Democrats control of the Senate. Both he and Warnock argued that the stakes are just as high this year.
鈥淵ou hate to be the guy who quotes the lyrics from the band, but history has its eyes on you,鈥� Miranda told the crowd, recycling the title of one 鈥淗amilton's鈥� many popular songs.
Harvey, who wrote a 2017 book about celebrity influence in politics, said there's strong evidence that celebrities can draw media attention to issues. Less clear is whether a celebrity can spur a disengaged voter to cast a ballot.
鈥淲hether or not it goes from somebody鈥檚 brain having read it to 'Now I care about the race,鈥� that鈥檚 something that I think is very difficult to document," Harvey said.
The professor said research on celebrities who endorse and market products shows such advertising is 鈥渘ot nearly effective as you might think." Harvey said that it might be reasonable to assume that celebrity endorsements of candidates might be similarly hit-or-miss.
Still, famous people continue to wade into politics. Democrat Cisco Aguilar, running for secretary of state in Nevada, rolled out an endorsement video from Miranda on Friday. Pennsylvania Democratic Senate candidate John Fetterman hosted a fundraiser with 鈥淎nt Man鈥� star Paul Rudd this week, and musician Dave Matthews will play at a Fetterman rally in Pittsburgh next week.
Mixed martial artists, including several who have publicly supported Trump are the celebrities of choice for some Republicans. In Arizona, Republican gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake has been making appearances with former Ultimate Fighting Championship champion and Olympic wrestling gold medalist Henry Cejudo, calling them fight nights, and appearing on a stage adorned with an American flag and punching bags.
鈥淭hey never back down from a fight,鈥� Lake鈥檚 campaign wrote in an email to supporters. 鈥淛oin these two champions for a knock out night fighting for Arizona.鈥�
In Nevada, Republican candidate for governor Joe Lombardo was endorsed Thursday by Dana White, the president of UFC, hailing Lombardo鈥檚 law enforcement credentials.
鈥淪heriff Lombardo kept law and order here in Vegas,鈥� White said in a video. 鈥淗e protected our businesses and our families and kept our streets and schools safe.鈥�
Kemp has attacked Abrams as 鈥淐elebrity Stacey,鈥� saying last month that Abrams is 鈥渞unning her campaign to cater to liberal elites鈥� and not to Georgians, and mocking Abrams, a Star Trek fan, for her cameo appearance earlier this year as president of Earth in 鈥淪tar Trek: Discovery.鈥�
鈥淲hile Stacey Abrams continues to solicit the help of out-of-state billionaires,鈥� Kemp spokesperson Tate Mitchell said after Thursday's Oprah Winfrey event, 鈥淕ov. Kemp will continue to talk to hardworking Georgians about his record of economic success and plan to build a safer, stronger Georgia.鈥�
Abrams, though, told reporters after her appearance with Miranda that she's not worried about her celebrity appearances backfiring, noting Georgia's burgeoning film and television industry, which is financed by state tax credits.
鈥淎m I concerned that famous people who pour $4.4 billion into our economy know where Georgia is?" she said. "No I鈥檓 not.鈥�
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Jeff Amy, The Associated Press
