Georgia is ground zero in the battle for the balance of power in Washington, D.C., as control of the U.S. Senate now hinges on the outcome of the two Senate runoff races in the Peach State. With the Senate majority leadership within his reach, Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) recently declared, “Now we take Georgia, and then we change America.” And now the cast reunion of HBO’s Veep has raised more than $640,000 to help Georgia Democrats in their effort to flip the U.S. Senate in the state’s runoff elections in January.
Actress Julia Louis-Dreyfus led Sunday’s livestream reading of the Veep episode “Mother” that served as a fundraiser for America Votes, a left-wing organization aiming to boost voter turnout for Democrats. The episode follows President Selina Meyer as she loses the Nevada recount and thus the White House, while also dealing with the death of her mother, known as “Meemaw.”
America Votes is currently under investigation in Georgia for allegedly attempting to illegally register voters ahead of the runoffs.
Veep showrunner David Mandel revealed that the event had raised more than $640,000 as of late Sunday evening.
The livestream reading featured an uncut version of “Mother” with scenes that didn’t make it into the original episode. It also featured special guests who were not in Veep, including Stephen Colbert and actors Mark Hamill and Don Cheadle.
The Veep reunion is one of several Hollywood celebrity efforts to boost the efforts of Democrat challengers Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock to unseat Republican incumbent Sens. David Perdue and Kelly Loeffler.
Kumail Nanjiani — who participated in the Veep fundraiser — and Sophia Bush are spearheading an effort called Win Both Seats, which is raising money for “black and brown” community organizers who are getting out the minority vote in Georgia.
Harold & Kumar star Kal Penn recently teamed up with Kamala Harris’ sister to urge South Asian voters in Georgia to cast their ballots for Democrats on January 5.
Stars have also been pouring money into the Georgia race. Actors George Clooney, Leonardo DiCaprio, and Will Smith have all given money to help Georgia Democrats.
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