Should celebrities get involved in politics? Now more than ever, celebrities are trying to work their way into politics through using their fame, to garner more attention and coincide with politicians. One infamous celebrity who became a politician was Arnold Schwarzenegger. He first started out as an actor, but soon became the governor of California from 2003-2011. Another example would be the famous rapper, and Kim Kardashians husband, Kanye West. He attempted to run in the 2020 presidential election, however, this outcome was not in his favor. Now, Caitlyn Jenner is running for the governor of California.

Caitlyn Jenner, the former olympian, and reality TV star, has decided to run for the governor of California. Ms. Jenner is an openly transgender candidate, who will be running against Gavin Newsome, a member of the democratic party. However, despite her fame, and the small amount of campaigning Ms. Jenner has done so far, a poll done for the New York Times shows that over 40% of the state’s voters would recall Governor Newsome, since he has handled the pandemic well in their perspectives. Jenner’s running for governor has stirred up some controversy, and raised a bigger question; should celebrities get involved in politics?

Some people think that celebrities who aren’t involved in politics normally should not get involved, as it is most likely a publicity stunt, or is done for more fame. Bernards High School senior Zoe Clemson says she believes that at this point it seems like “just anyone would run for the governor of California.” Another BHS senior, Michael Tropp says, “I think every politician needs to start from somewhere and I don’t really have an issue with celebrities getting involved in politics, but I think they should start more locally and work their way up like most other politicians.” As celebrities running for high political positions with no previous experience becomes normalized, the debate about whether or not the person is actually fit for the position remains controversial.