In the final days of a close race, as the candidates made their final pitches at rallies in swing states, both campaigns tried to harness the star power of their most celebrated supporters.
At a late-night rally in New Hampshire on Monday, Mitt Romney's opening act was Kid Rock. Before his final song, “Born Free,†the Michigan-born performer channeled the Romney campaign's one-word slogan, “Believe,†asking the crowd: “I want to know, do you believe? I want to know if you believe that you still live in the greatest country in the world!â€
Earlier on Monday, President Obama appeared on stage with Jay-Z and Bruce Springs teen at a rally in Ohio. As The Ohio Capital Blog reported, Mr. Springsteen, channeling Woody Guthrie, played a ditty inspired by the Obama campaign slogan, “Forward.â€
The same blog also captured video of Senator Sherrod Brown, Democrat of Ohio, dancing during Jay-Z's performance.
Hoping to bolster the enthusiasm of small-town voters in Ohio, the Romney campaign dispatched a local hero, Jack Nicklaus, to rally the troops on Monday at a breakfast meeting in Port Clinton. The golfer, recently described by Mr. Romney as “the greatest athlete of the 20th century,†argued that the former Massachusetts governor would govern in a bipartisan fashion in his address at the Republican party headquarters in the town of 6,000.
Over the weekend, the Obama campaign unveiled a YouTube endorsement from the comedian Will Ferrell, who offered “to do anything to get you to vote on Nov. 6.â€