The sisters of Sigma Delta Tau sorority got an unexpected wake-up call Sunday morning, when actors Adam Brody and Rachael Leigh Cook visited the Hill Street house to register voters for Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama.
“I just touched Adam Brody!” one pajama-clad sister screamed after posing for a picture with the actor.
The two actors weren’t there just to sign autographs; instead, they registered voters for the 47-year-old Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama.
Brody and Cook are just two of about the half-dozen celebrities who have come to Ann Arbor recently to register voters and encourage volunteers to continue canvassing for Obama.
Earlier this month, Kal Penn of “Harold and Kumar Go to White Castle” and Jurnee Smollett of “The Great Debaters” registered voters on the Diag. Actress Jamie Lee Curtis met with volunteers Thursday in Obama’s Ann Arbor campaign office.
Bringing celebrities to college campuses has long been a tactic of Democratic campaigns. The strategy certainly creates buzz for the candidates, but some question whether entertainers can influence undecided voters.
“Just because someone likes a particular television star doesn’t mean they’ll vote the way that television star wants them to,” political science Prof. Vincent Hutchings said.
Hutchings said celebrities have little sway in the political arena, but added that campaigns like to take advantage of a celebrity’s ability to draw a crowd.
“My suspicion is that their impact is relatively minimal,” Hutchings said. “They might motivate people to get registered if their presence would attract a crowd that wouldn’t have shown up otherwise.”
LSA junior Andrew Rabenstein, a member of Greek Life for Obama, a committee of the College Democrats, said the energy created by Brody and Leigh Cook’s presence was incredible.
Both actors chatted with fans and encouraged everyone to register, though most in the crowd said they already had. Rabenstein said the total number of voter registration forms the group returned hasn’t been determined yet, but he estimated that between five and 10 forms were collected at each Greek house the canvassers hit.
“If we could have expanded that to the other houses, which was our original goal, then we could have pulled in 20 to 30 people at each house,” Rabenstein said.
Before joining Brody at SDT, Cook spent about a half hour on the Diag in hopes of helping students fill out registration forms, but everyone she encountered was already registered.
Cook said there was a sense that she and Brody were preaching to the choir, but that they were successful in their goal of recruiting and encouraging volunteers.
Hutchings, an expert in election politics, said celebrities who make campaign visits act as cheerleaders, energizing already-enlisted volunteers.
“That might be useful at the margins — to help motivate the troops, so to speak,” he said. “They’re already working for the candidate they believe in, but it’s a nice perk, icing on the cake to get to meet a movie star.”
Brody, whose father is a University alum, said he was approached by what he called a “celebrity wrangler” for the campaign, who asked him to accompany Cook to the University to motivate volunteers.
“If by taking a picture or talking to someone for five minutes, a supporter or volunteer, or if I can use that as a barter for getting people to volunteer, then that’s great,” Brody said.
Many of the 50 people in the Michigan Union’s Anderson Room said meeting the star of the “The O.C.” was part of the reason they chose to canvass Sunday.
“We haven’t had problems turning people out to canvass this year even though its not the most glamorous of work, but Adam Brody and Rachael Leigh Cook made it all the more exciting,” said LSA junior Dana Cronyn, a member of the College Democrats.
Brody and Cook made 14 stops over two days in Michigan. Before coming to Ann Arbor, the pair made stops at several Michigan colleges, including Central Michigan University and Eastern Michigan University.
Both were pragmatic about the impact their tour would ultimately have on the outcome of the election, but said they were grateful to meet with young voters.
“I’m just trying to be a part of it and if I can use the celebrity or attention for a good cause, that’s great,” Brody said. “And at the same time, I don’t think that entitles me a lectern to preach from.”
The position of campaign cheerleader was one Jamie Lee Curtis held proudly Thursday.
When she stopped by Barack Obama’s Ann Arbor campaign office, she rubbed shoulders with volunteers by making phone calls for the Democratic nominee and thanked them for their efforts.
“I do – excuse my French – shit,” Curtis said. “I do nothing compared to the amount of work each one of you has done on behalf of me, on behalf of my kids, of my country.”