Michelle Obama Teams Up With Tom Hanks, Lin-Manuel Miranda For Voter Registration Campaign

The former first lady has launched When We All Vote, with co-chairs including Janelle Monáe, Chris Paul, Faith Hill and Tim McGraw.
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Former first lady Michelle Obama is joining forces with a slew of big names to get voters to the polls ahead of this year’s midterm elections.

When We All Vote, launched Thursday, aims to promote voter registration and “brings together citizens, institutions, and organizations to spark a conversation about our rights and responsibilities in shaping our democracy,” according to its website.

The group’s co-chairs include Obama, actor Tom Hanks, “Hamilton” playwright Lin-Manuel Miranda, singer and actress Janelle Monáe, NBA star Chris Paul, and country singers Faith Hill and Tim McGraw.

“It’s time. Our nation requires it. Our democracy, in the country we love, requires our attention, voice and participation,” Obama says in the group’s launch video. “When we all vote, we determine our future.”

The video starts with Obama recruiting her all-star team.

“I’m not throwing away my ... opportunity to make my voice heard this November,” Miranda tells Obama in the video, referencing a line from “Hamilton.”

According to the site, When We All Vote is nonpartisan. But the group’s board includes former Obama administration officials such as Valerie Jarrett, Tina Tchen and Pete Rouse, Politico reported Wednesday. Obama’s participation in the nonpartisan initiative worries some Democrats who had hoped she would be a key advocate on the campaign trail this fall, according to Politico.

In addition to registering voters, the initiative will train volunteers to promote voter registration, working with the group Rock the Vote, and hold a “week of action” in September.

Obama has mostly kept a low profile since leaving the White House but has been engaged in several initiatives that she started while serving as first lady, with a focus on education and women’s issues. She is also writing a memoir, Becoming, that is set to be released this fall.

She and former President Barack Obama have hosted a number of events and projects through their foundation, are planning their presidential library in Chicago and recently announced a production deal with the streaming giant Netflix.

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