NEW YORK — How close was NFL quarterback Aaron Rodgers to being a vice presidential candidate in the 2024 election? We may never know the answer, but one thing is for sure: Americans love to speculate about celebrities running for office! Now, according to a brand new poll, the country is apparently most interested in seeing another “President Washington” in the White House. This time, however, it would be Denzel!
The survey of 2,000 Americans, conducted by Talker Research on behalf of StudyFinds, found that many people are intrigued by the idea of the “Training Day” star running for office, with 15 percent declaring their support for the Academy Award winner.
Coming in a close second place was Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, as 13 percent of those polled said they’d be interested in voting for the former WWE champion — who fittingly now goes by the nickname “The Final Boss.”
Taking the last spot in the top three was Tom Hanks (12%), followed up by Clint Eastwood (10%), George Clooney (10%), and Oprah (9%).
Obviously, there are plenty of celebs out there that the American public doesn’t want anywhere near 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. At the bottom of Talker Research’s list of celebrity political options, brothers Jake and Logan Paul both earned just two percent of the vote.
With that in mind, one in three Americans said they were uninterested in voting for any of the celebrity candidates in the poll (36%). Researchers note that it wasn’t because of a lack of choice, as the survey examined the political chances of roughly 40 popular actors and celebrities, ranging from Beyoncé and Jennifer Aniston to Ryan Reynolds and Elon Musk.
While running a celebrity as your party’s presidential candidate might seem like a good idea on its face, the results of the poll showed that it might not get you all the way to Election Day. According to the survey, only 28 percent of Americans are at least somewhat more likely to vote for a celebrity if they ran for president, with just 13 percent saying they are “much more likely.”
However, an overwhelming 52 percent claim it wouldn’t affect their vote at all — and 21 percent believe it would even make them less likely to vote for the celebrity ticket. Similarly, only 17 percent of all those surveyed believe that “fame” is an important requisite for running for office, with 73 percent believing it’s not important for a politician.
Social media presence and influence don’t seem to be a factor either. Only 21 percent would feel at least somewhat more inclined to vote for a candidate that had a large social media following. For six in 10, it does not affect how they vote at all.
Top 10 Celebrities Americans Want To See Run For President:
- Denzel Washington (15%)
- Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson (13%)
- Tom Hanks (12%)
- Clint Eastwood (10%)
- George Clooney (10%)
- Oprah Winfrey (9%)
- Matthew McConaughey (8%)
- Bill Gates (7%)
- Elon Musk (7%)
- Mark Cuban (7%)
Survey methodology:
This online survey of 2,000 Americans was commissioned by Study Finds and conducted by market research company Talker Research, in accordance with the Market Research Society’s code of conduct. Data was collected from April 3 to April 8, 2024. The margin of error is +/- 2.2 points with 95% confidence. This survey was overseen by the OnePoll research team, which is a member of the MRS and has corporate membership with the American Association for Public Opinion Research (AAPOR).