Mark Ruffalo has teamed up with actors Jake Johnson of FOX’s “New Girl” and Johnathan Scott of the HGTV show “Property Brothers” to promote the Freedom to Vote Act in a spoof on TV infomercials about erectile dysfunction, according to Deadline. The public interest organization RepresentUs is sponsoring the digital ad.
“Trouble maintaining a strong coalition? Tired of the parade of disappointing performances? Then you might be one of the 330 million Americans suffering from electile dysfunction,” the video’s narrator begins.
The Freedom to Vote Act would restrict gerrymandering, block foreign interference in U.S. elections, and fight other forms of voter suppression by expanding voter access. It would also make Election Day a federal holiday with the aim of “empowering everyday citizens and healing our democracy,” as the ad articulates.
Congressional Republicans have blocked the legislation up to this point, and threaten to thwart it using the filibuster moving forward. In the ad, Ruffalo responds with the line, “Filibusting just doesn’t make me feel good anymore.”
The parody made its debut Tuesday night on “The Rachel Maddow Show,” and has since blown up on social media. RepresentUs also plans to purchase television ads in the future.
“[The video is] a unique and fun way to engage people on a topic that isn’t always sexy,” Ruffalo said in a statement. “Sometimes laughter is the best medicine and our democracy needs some healing.”
