With the political convention season upon us E-Poll® looked at which celebrities Democrats and Republicans find most appealing. Interestingly we noticed several similarities between the stars on this list and the “Top 10 ‘Favorite’ Shows Among Democrats and Republicans.”

In many ways the lists are mirrors of each other:

• The favorite celebrities list for Democrats is ethnically more diverse and edgier, similar to their favorite programs list.
• The Republican favorite celebrities list is full of family friendly celebs and is loaded with actors who play “law-and-order” roles.

Favorite Celebrities Among Democrats

Data source: E-Score Celebrity. List fielded among respondents 18+ and who indicated Democrat as their political party affiliation.

Favorite Celebrities Among Republicans

Data source: E-Score Celebrity. List fielded among respondents 18+ and who indicated Republican as their political party affiliation.

Democrats

Several of the celebrities on the Democrat list also star in some of their favorite shows. Viola Davis (How to Get Away With Murder), Maisie Williams (Game of Thrones), Kit Harington (Game of Thrones), and Norman Reedus (The Walking Dead) all star in programs that appear on our favorite shows list.

Celebrities like comedian and political commentator John Oliver provide an edge to the Democratic list. Additionally, at #12, Jesse Williams has been a lightning rod since his speech at the 2016 BET Awards. With polarizing comments from E-Poll panelists, Williams’ may be the edgiest celebrity to make this list.

One of the favorite celebrities among Democrats, Chris Evans, plays Captain America, and in real life he is the nephew of Democrat Congressman Michael Capuano. He has talked about a possible political pursuit some day.

Republicans

The Republican side of the list has a law-and-order feel.  Celebrities like Clint Eastwood, Sam Elliot, Harrison Ford, and Sean Connery have starred in their share of “good guys of justice” roles. Interestingly enough, Harrison Ford plays roles that are well received by Republicans even though he is a life-long Democrat, implying his on-screen personas may be strong enough to override the real life behavior for Republicans.

An interesting note about the Republican list is with the exception of David McCallum and Pauley Perrette, who both star in NCIS, no other celebrity from the top 20 stars in a favorite show among Republicans.

Bipartisanship

Several celebrities enjoy cross-over appeal between the parties. One such celebrity, Pauley Perrette, has become a favorite among both parties. She was able to cross party lines as she called attention to the critical need for mental health services for the homeless in our country after her recent attack. Another cross-party celeb, Denzel Washington, is loved by both Democrats (#4) and Republicans (#14). He fits the bipartisan narrative as he has yet to endorse a candidate for the 2016 presidency saying, “We just need to know more.” This after voting for President Obama in the last elections.

Takeaway

Party politics separate more than just political views. They also impact which celebrities appeal to which group. Similar to the party makeup, Democrats prefer very diverse celebrities when talking about their most appealing. Conversely, Republicans prefer similarities in their favorite celebrities evidenced by half their list being actors/ actresses who have played characters who serve on the right side of the law.

With E-Score products you will know exactly how people within your target audience feel about potential endorsers (Celebrity and Character), ad placements (Programs), collaborations (Brand) and more.

Resources

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