While the Electoral College has been a topic of controversy for quite a long time (especially since the Bush/Gore run-off in 2000), it’s a system that is in place that represents the last bastion of hope for droves of anti-Trump Americans. On Monday, Dec. 19, the electors will cast their votes—a total of 270 out of 538 votes are required for the president-elect to take office.
17 celebrities, including Martin Sheen, Debra Messing, James Cromwell, BD Wong, Noah Wyle, Freda Payne, Bob Odenkirk, J. Smith Cameron, Michael Urie, Moby, Mike Farrell, Loretta Swit, Richard Schiff, Christine Lahti, Steven Pasquale, Emily Tyra and Talia Balsam, all speak in the above PSA, urging at least 37 members of the Electoral College to vote against Donald Trump, denying him the full 270 votes.
The video opens with Sheen, saying, “As you know, our Founding Fathers built the electoral college to safeguard the American people from the dangers of a demagogue, and to ensure that the presidency only goes to someone who is ‘to an eminent degree, endowed with the requisite qualifications.’” Sheen quotes Alexander Hamilton’s Federalist Papers to further underline his point.
The video was produced by Unite For America, a group that formed following the election of Trump.
The speakers specifically mention that they are not asking the electors to vote for Clinton—they are only asking for electors to “vote their conscience” and elect someone who is competent and responsible.