Several celebrities who promised to “Rock the Vote” aren’t voting.
Rock the Vote, an organization that seeks to bring Millennials to the polls, recently released a star-studded public service announcement. The video, a parody of Lil Jon’s “Turn Down for What” is called “Turn Out for What.”
In the video, celebrities promise to vote and “turn out” for issues such as education and legalization of same-sex marriage and marijuana.
According to the Washington Post, Rock the Vote requires that its representatives are registered to vote, but does not check their voting records.
According to the Post, many of the celebrities in the video did not appear to have voted in the last midterm election:
At least five who appeared in the PSA — “Girls” actress Lena Dunham, comedian Whoopi Goldberg, “Orange is the New Black” actress Natasha Lyonne, “Rich Kids of Beverly Hills” star E.J. Johnson, and actor Darren Criss — did not vote in the last midterm, records from Los Angeles County and New York City show.
The Post was also unable to locate records for six others featured in the video, including Lil Jon.
Audrey Gelman, a spokeswoman for the group, told the Post in an email, “We believe individuals who have missed opportunities to vote in the past should not be disqualified from committing to participate in the political process in the future, and helping spread a positive message of civic engagement.”
In 2010, 24 percent of Millennials, Americans ages 18 to 29, voted in the midterm elections, according to a Harvard survey. Exit polls indicate that this demographic supported Democrats 58 to 42 percent. Now, however, the survey indicates that this demographic will favor Republicans 51 to 47 percent in 2014.
Rock the Vote, according to their website, is “the largest non-profit and non-partisan organization in the United States driving the youth vote to the polls.”
