DNC Announces Historic Seven-Figure Ad Campaign To Reach Black Voters Featuring Celebrity Voices
October 28, 2024
Radio spots will feature the voices of Stevie Wonder, Kerry Washington, John Legend, and LeToya Luckett-Coles
Today, the DNC announced a first-ever seven-figure “I Will Vote” ad campaign targeting Black voters through ads in 55 Black publications and on 48 Black radio stations across the country. The historic ad campaign will feature radio spots from Kerry Washington, LeToya Luckett-Coles, John Legend, and Stevie Wonder.
This strategic investment comes on the heels of several paid ad campaigns launched by the DNC and the Harris-Walz campaign aimed at turning out and mobilizing Black voters – a critical voting bloc this election. The DNC’s “I Will Vote” campaign directs voters to the DNC’s most complete, accurate, and up-to-date national coverage of polling places and voter education information all in one place to empower Black communities with the information they need to exercise their right to vote in this critical election cycle.
“This investment showcases Democrats’ unwavering commitment to reaching Black voters where they are and through the platforms they trust – including familiar Black voices that will reach them on the airwaves – to ensure they have the resources they need to cast their ballot in the most important election of our lifetimes,” said DNC Chair Jaime Harrison. “We know that the Black vote will play a major role in the outcome of this election, and there’s only one candidate who will prioritize the safety and dignity of the Black community while advancing our fundamental freedoms, rights, and economic opportunity. In this last sprint to Election Day, the Democratic Party is taking no vote or community for granted, using every opportunity to engage with every facet of our diverse coalition of voters in order to elect Democrats up and down the ballot this November.”
DNC’s HBCU Homecoming Tour: Engaging Black Voters on the Ground
The ads are also launching as Democrats engaged on the ground directly with young Black voters at Spelman College and Morehouse College for Spelhouse Homecoming this past Saturday, the final stop of the DNC’s HBCU Homecoming Tour in partnership with BET We V.O.T.E. The HBCU tour featured “I Will Vote” themed activations, including an “I Will Vote” photobooth, voting merch, and used IWillVote.com/Culture to encourage Americans to make a plan to vote.
“Black voters are the heart of the Democratic Party and we are not taking them for granted,” said DNC National Political Director Brencia Berry. “We are focused on meeting people where they’re at – both where they get their news and where they spend their time. At HBCU homecomings over the last month, we have been speaking directly to Black voters about the stakes of this election and being met with excitement for the possibility of the next president of the United States being an HBCU graduate.”
Supporting and Investing in Reaching Black Communities
In this ad campaign, the DNC worked with three Black vendors to buy ads exclusively with Black print publications and radio stations in order to ensure these messages reach Black communities where they are. These radio ads feature trusted voices within the Black community, sharing how Democrats are fighting for lower prescription drug prices, access to reproductive health care, and an economy that works for everyone while stressing the importance of voting.
While Democrats prioritize uplifting Black communities, Donald Trump’s Project 2025 agenda if elected would harm Black communities, including through cuts to Social Security and Medicare for Black Americans, a reversal of provisions that cap insulin at $35 for seniors, gutting the Affordable Care Act, ending student debt relief, and significantly increasing the tax rate for hardworking Americans.
“I Will Vote” Radio Ads on Black Radio
The “I Will Vote” radio spots will appear on 48 Black radio stations across the country, featuring the voices of Kerry Washington, LeToya Luckett-Coles, John Legend, and Stevie Wonder. Listen to the radio ads below:
Hi. This is Kerry Washington, and I am here to remind you that your vote is your voice, and your voice is your power.
If we want to see the progress that our communities are looking for, it is time to get involved and let your voices be heard. That means, if you want an economy that works for all of us, if you want to lower the cost of living, if you want a president that puts us and our communities first, then you got to get out and vote.
But here’s what you really got to do. First, go to IWillVote.com and make a plan to vote. Next, if you can vote early, vote early, and then grab three of your friends and family members and make sure that they do the same.
Hey, y’all, LeToya Luckett-Coles here, and I’m here to remind you that your vote matters. Y’all, there are several women in states across this country that are literally dying because they rolled away our rights to reproductive health care.
We have to show up to the polls, and we have to vote. We have to speak up. We have to show up. We can be the change. So I want you to do me a favor, I want you to do a favor for yourself and go to IWillVote.com and be the change.
Hey everybody, it’s John Legend, and I’m here to remind you that your vote matters. Go to IWillVote.com to register and make a plan.
Now your vote for Democrats has already made a difference. We’ve been able to cap insulin at $35 a month for seniors, and we’ve got more work to do.
Voting is the best way to make sure we get the progress that we’re looking for, capping insulin for everybody. So vote for the people who are fighting for our rights and freedoms. Go to IWillVote.com.
Hi. This is Stevie Wonder. This election, all elections, are so important. It determines our future. So please remember to vote. Your vote matters. Believe it.
VO: So make your voice heard. Go to IWillVote.com or text vote to 70888, for more information on how and when to vote.
“I Will Vote” Ads Featured in 55 Print and Digital Publications
The ‘I Will Vote’ ad campaign will be featured in the following 55 Black print and digital publications across the country. See the publications and ad below:
- Afro-American – Baltimore
- African-American News and Issues – Dallas
- African-American New and Issues – Houston
- African News Digest
- Annapolis Times
- Atlanta Daily World
- Atlanta Voice
- Baltimore Times
- Birmingham Times
- Capital Outlook
- Dallas Examiner
- Dallas Post Tribune
- Dallas Weekly
- Data News Weekly
- Daytona Times
- East Texas Review
- Ebony News Today
- Fayetteville Press
- Florida Sentinel Bulletin
- Florida Sun-Review
- Florida Star
- Gary Crusader
- Greene County Democrat
- Harlem Community Newspapers
- Houston Defender
- Houston Forward Times
- Houston Style
- Indianapolis Recorder
- Inner-City Newspaper
- Inquiring News
- Jackson Blazer
- Jacksonville Free Press
- Las Vegas Black Image
- Louisiana Weekly
- Mahogany Revue
- Miami Times
- Michigan Bulletin
- New Citizens Press
- New Orleans Tribune
- New York Amsterdam News
- North Dallas Gazette
- Orlando Advocate
- Philadelphia Sunday Sun
- Pride Magazine
- QCity Metro
- Savannah Herald
- Scoop USA
- Southern Digest – Baton Rouge
- South Florida Times
- Speakin’ Out News
- Star of Zion
- Word In Black
- Tempo News
- Texas Metro News
- The Villager