Former first lady Michelle Obama’s voter mobilization initiative is using drag shows and the promise of seeing rapper Cardi B perform to energize voters to participate in the election.
When We All Vote (WWAV), which Obama founded in 2018, plans to hold 500 “Party at the Polls” events in Georgia, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Arizona, Nevada and other states in the weeks leading up to Election Day. The former first lady is also expected to headline a WWAV rally on Oct. 29 in Georgia.
The group is working to reach voters in battleground states through music and celebrity appearances. WWAV stated Wednesday that the goal is to turn “early voting into a celebration and brings communities together to cast their ballots early.”
On Wednesday, the former first lady announced plans for the rally to her 22 million social media followers, expressing excitement about it being held in the swing state of Georgia.
“With early voting happening right now — it’s important that folks make a plan to vote by Election Day,” she wrote.
One of the “Party at the Polls” events in Arizona on Friday included performances by Drag Out the Vote, a drag queen group that urges LGBT-identified voters to cast their ballots.
Barbra Seville, “Miss Gay Southern America,” and Drag Out The Vote drag ambassador Afrika America are scheduled to host the drag show event.
Another drag show will be held in Nevada on Oct. 29 featuring a performer known as “Plasma” from “RuPaul’s Drag Race.”
Actor Mark Ruffalo headlined an Oct. 12 WWAV event in Arizona. Ruffalo, known for playing The Hulk in Disney’s Marvel movies, joined the advocacy group for a “Walk to the Polls” event when he visited the Navajo Nation for the first time to urge people to vote.
On Monday, WWAV announced on Instagram that registered voters or people who volunteer with the group can enter a sweepstakes to see Cardi B perform ONE MusicFest in Atlanta later this month. The prize package includes two tickets and up to a $1,200 travel credit for the winner.
“The election doesn’t start on Election Day — it ends on Election Day,” WWAV Executive Director Beth Lynk said in a press release on Wednesday. […] “Mrs. Obama, our co-chairs and ambassadors, and voters will all come together at this rally to celebrate Georgia.”
“Together, we will take our momentum and energy to the ballot box and set the tone for the entire country — especially first-time voters — to vote early,” she added. When We All Vote did not respond to The Christian Post’s request for comment.