Gwen Stefani Raised Over $500,000 for This Political Candidate
Gwen Stefani has said that she does not like to make political statements. While the singer once said that she believes her beliefs should come through clearly enough, she does not publicly endorse political candidates or share how she votes. Still, Stefani made it clear in 2012 that one particular candidate had her support. She raised more money than most celebrities for the campaign.
Gwen Stefani raised a great deal of money for one political candidate
In 2012, Stefani was one of the top bundlers for Barack Obama’s presidential campaign. There is a limit on how much an individual can contribute to campaigns, so bundlers organize fundraisers and collect campaign donations from other donors.
Per W Magazine, Stefani raised at least $500,000 for the Obama campaign that year. This placed her in the top tier of all bundlers. She hosted a fundraising event at her own home with Michelle Obama.
Stefani also personally donated $5,000 to the campaign. This is the maximum amount of money she could have given. She also donated $1,250 to the DNC.
Stefani once spoke about the fact that Obama put one of her songs on one of his playlists.
“The first song I ever wrote was a song called ‘Different People,’ which was on the Obama playlist, you know, a song about everyone being different and being the same and loving each other,” she told Paper Magazine. “The very first song I wrote.”
Gwen Stefani shared why she doesn’t make political endorsements
While Stefani raised money for the Obama campaign, she said she doesn’t want to discuss how she casts her vote in elections. She doesn’t think that she’s the right person to speak on politics.
“The whole point of voting, is you have this personal space to feel how you feel,” she said. “I use my platform to share my life story and to engage with people and to exchange whatever gift I was giving. I’m not a political science major. I am not that person. Everyone knows that. So why would I even talk about it?”
Still, she thinks that people might be able to guess where she leans politically. She pointed to the messages of togetherness that she has promoted with her music.
“I can see how people would be curious, but I think it’s pretty obvious who I am,” she said. “I’ve been around forever. I started my band because we were really influenced by ska, which was a movement that happened in the late ’70s, and it was really all about people coming together.”
She sang at Obama’s final state dinner
In 2016, Stefani took the stage at Obama’s final state dinner. The president hosted Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi in October. Stefani and her then-boyfriend Blake Shelton attended together and she performed.
Stefani sang her solo hit, “The Sweet Escape” before welcoming Shelton onstage with her. They sang a duet of “Go Ahead and Break My Heart.”
