Michigan politicians do the surrogate shuffle as they scramble toward Election Day

ANN ARBOR — When Mishal Charania drops off her ballot at city hall, it'll be the first time she's ever voted.

The sophomore at the University of Michigan decided to celebrate the new foray into democracy with a trip Saturday night to hear from U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders.

"I'm from Ann Arbor, so voting in Ann Arbor is really important to me," she said.

"Just, feeling like I can make a difference, even if it means something that is considered to be small but has a larger, broader impact than I might even recognize."

More than 1,000 other people crammed into Rackham Auditorium on the campus of the University of Michigan to hear the former presidential candidate rail against corporate greed, ex-President Donald Trump's election lies and the need to increase access to affordable health care.

But attendees also heard from a slew of organizers, all focused on one big goal: getting young Michiganders to the polls.

"Young people historically vote, of any generational voting blocs, closest to Election Day. And there's still so much that could be determined right here in Michigan," said Cristina Tzintzún Ramirez, president and executive director of NextGen America, a national organization focused on increasing younger voter turnout that helped host the event.

"Young people, the candidate that moves them the most, the most popular — he may not be the youngest, but he's the most popular — is Bernie Sanders, hands down."

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In the final stages of political campaigns that will shape Michigan's future, Republican and Democratic politicos interviewed by the Free Press note candidates tend to shift from convincing people why they should vote for them to reminding them to cast a ballot. That shift frequently requires the candidate to at times step aside and give way to a familiar face, one that voters remember and potentially trust.

"The number of undecided voters that remain in Michigan are important, and they are real, but they are small in number relative to the 'base'," said Abby Clark, a Democratic political consultant.

"We need to make sure they cast their ballots, that's what the focus is at this stage in the campaign."

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It's also a relatively easy way for candidates to get a bit of free attention in the waning hours of the campaign, said John Sellek, a Republican political consultant.

"When you're at this late stage of the campaign and you're scrambling to put together any kind of bus tour-type events that'll draw earned media attention, you'll take almost anybody that'll come to draw the media and get your supporters a little bit more excited," Sellek said.

For Republicans, that meant Trump earlier this fall, Texas Republican U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz last week, former Vice President Mike Pence on Friday and Tulsi Gabbard, a former Democratic member of congress who recently renounced her membership in the party.

In addition to Sanders, Democrats rallied with former President Barack Obama last week, New Jersey Democratic U.S. Sen. Cory Booker and current U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg. A duo of well-known celebrities — hometown hero and basketball legend Magic Johnson plus movie and television star Kerry Washington — also either hosted events over the weekend or plan a last-minute event on Monday.

Does Obama translate to higher Detroit turnout, something Gov. Gretchen Whitmer really needs? Can Pence propel state Sen. Tom Barrett, R-Charlotte, over the top in a very tight and expensive mid-Michigan congressional race?

Michiganders will find out this week.

Gubernatorial race

Trump rallied thousands in early October, right after absentee ballots became available. Polling shows the race between GOP candidate Tudor Dixon and Whitmer tightened some since then — although there's nothing to indicate it was due to Trump's support.

However, polls also show Whitmer is lagging a bit with Detroit voters. Plus, Detroit City Clerk Janice Winfrey predicted turnout would be low this election, around 30% total, compared with 41% in 2018.

Enter, Obama. The popular former Democratic president rallied with Whitmer and other Democrats in Detroit on Oct. 29, blasting Dixon and cajoling his supporters to head to the polls.

The governor needs people who love Obama to also come out and support her on Tuesday, Sellek noted.

"It gives a general emotional boost to Democrats everywhere in Michigan. Because I think many of them look back on Obama now as sort of the last normal president. The last president who tries to charm you and actually succeeds at that," Sellek said.

A speaker like Obama can not only energize someone to vote, but to knock on doors or otherwise volunteer for campaigns, Clark noted. That voter mobilization effort is almost more important than trying to persuade the limited number of people undecided on how they'll vote, she said.

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Congressional races

A few days later and about 100 miles West, Pence stood amid corn stalks and plump pumpkins to stump for Barrett, a Charlotte Republican running for a mid-Michigan congressional seat against U.S. Rep. Elissa Slotkin, D-Lansing.

"I'm here for one reason, and one reason only, and that is that Michigan and America need Tom Barrett in a Republican majority in the U.S. House of Representatives," Pence said.

His trip came after outgoing U.S. Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wyoming, visited the Lansing area to support Slotkin. Both visits indicate it's a tight race, where moderate or swing voters could make the difference.

The fact Pence did not appear with any of the Republican statewide candidates the same day, like Dixon, also speaks to the dangers of bringing in specific surrogates for some campaigns, Sellek said.

"Pence and Trump are not always exactly getting along these days. And my sense is Tom Barrett didn't go out looking for Mike Pence," Sellek said.

"The bottom line is, Mike Pence is an unquestioned conservative and he was Donald Trump's vice president. So it's still a boost for someone like Tom Barrett, who is literally flipping over every rock possible to encourage people to vote in what looks like an incredibly close election."

He suggested Pence may have reached out to the campaign to "plant the seeds" for a future run. It's not uncommon, especially during a midterm where candidates are weighing potential presidential announcements in the near future.

Cruz, who ran for president in 2016 and could potentially run again, campaigned for GOP congressional candidate John Gibbs. Cruz told a standing-room-only crowd at a Grand Rapids Italian restaurant the coming midterms were a chance to "swing the pendulum" away from Democrats in Washington.

"For the past two cycles, I've worked to look across the country and try to identify the strongest conservative candidates who can run, who have a real shot at winning, and who when they win, will be leaders," Cruz said after the event. "They won't just go and follow the herd and do what they're told, but will actually have the courage to stand up and fight."

Gibbs' opponent, Democrat Hillary Scholten, held her own surrogate event with a possible future presidential candidate: Buttigieg. The Michigan transplant joined Scholten and several local Democratic candidates ahead of a canvass launch in Grand Rapids Friday morning.

"I think it's a great opportunity for west Michigan to be represented by a new generation of leadership, somebody who is motivated by bringing people together and solving problems," Buttigieg told the Free Press. "And that does speak to the kind of country and the kind of state that I want to raise our son and daughter in."

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Celebrities

Politicians are polarizing. Celebrities, generally, are much less so.

Perhaps no one in Michigan is as popular as Michigan State University basketball legend Earvin "Magic" Johnson. The Lansing and Los Angeles Lakers legend is scheduled to headline a final campaign event Monday evening with Whitmer.

"As absolutely everyone knows, our political landscape is pretty divisive right now. And a person like Magic Johnson is an exciting person that's not divisive," Clark said.

Actress Kerry Washington, star of the ABC political drama "Scandal" along with many other movies and shows, appeared Saturday afternoon with Democrats at an event in Ferndale. Common, an actor and musician, cut a last-minute ad for state Rep. Kyra Harris Bolden, a Democrat running for the Michigan Supreme Court.

With hours left before voting booths open, candidates will take whatever help they can get in ensuring every last supporter casts a ballot.

Polls open at 7 a.m. Tuesday and close at 8 p.m.

Contact Dave Boucher at dboucher@freepress.com or 313-938-4591. Follow him on Twitter @Dave_Boucher1.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michigan candidates do the surrogate shuffle as they race to Election Day