--- title: Donald Trump: Celebrities Urge Electoral College to Dump Him description: A band of celebrities teamed up to create a video urging Republican members of the Electoral College vote "your conscience." canonical: https://time.com/4603254/celebrities-electoral-college-donald-trump-video/ author: Julia Zorthian article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2016-12-15T14:34:13.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-10-07T06:56:42.755Z article:section: Politics og:title: These Celebrities Are Urging the Electoral College to Dump Donald Trump og:description: Martin Sheen, Debra Messing and others teamed up in a new video og:url: https://time.com/4603254/celebrities-electoral-college-donald-trump-video/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt9c483c4cfe03a3f6/6988b31086f68ef5086e2f4b/celebrities-vote-against-trump-electoral-college.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 4454 og:image:height: 2505 og:image:alt: celebrities vote against trump electoral college og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: These Celebrities Are Urging the Electoral College to Dump Donald Trump twitter:description: Martin Sheen, Debra Messing and others teamed up in a new video twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt9c483c4cfe03a3f6/6988b31086f68ef5086e2f4b/celebrities-vote-against-trump-electoral-college.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # These Celebrities Are Urging the Electoral College to Dump Donald Trump > Sponsored content. 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It explains the politics, personalities and power dynamics behind the headlines, twice a week. #### Where can I get analysis of Washington politics by email? D.C. Brief is TIME's free Washington politics newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. It is written by a TIME senior correspondent who covers the capital full time. #### Who writes TIME's D.C. Brief? Philip Elliott, a senior correspondent at TIME, writes D.C. Brief. #### Is D.C. Brief free? Yes. D.C. Brief is free at time.com/newsletters. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3/newsletters?i=05fa3a7c-87b6-43c4-8899-70e83e6ef971&cr=time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3-v1) ## Video: A Message for Electors to Unite For America [Watch (HLS stream): A Message for Electors to Unite For America](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/DmqeDjO8.m3u8) (2:24)  _Published 2016-12-15. A band of celebrities teamed up to create a video urging Republican members of the Electoral College to vote “your conscience”—not for President-elect Donald Trump_  by [Julia Zorthian](https://time.com/author/julia-zorthian/)  ## Julia Zorthian Dec 15, 2016 2:34 PM UTC  by [Julia Zorthian](https://time.com/author/julia-zorthian/)  ## Julia Zorthian Dec 15, 2016 2:34 PM UTC A band of celebrities teamed up to create a video urging Republican members of [the Electoral College](http://time.com/4558510/electoral-college-history-slavery/) to vote “your conscience”—not for President-elect Donald Trump The ensemble, including [Martin Sheen](http://time.com/4465252/martin-sheen-we-days/), Debra Messing, Bob Odenkrik and BD Wong, urged the electors to [choose someone else](http://time.com/4597387/faithless-electors-donald-trump/) in the Electoral College vote on Dec. 19\. Trump is expected to surpass the 270 votes necessary to become president after [winning 306 electoral votes](http://time.com/4587158/clinton-leads-trump-2-5-million-votes/) on election day, but in the newly released video, the celebrities implored 37 voters to keep that from happening. “You have the position, the authority, and the opportunity to go down in the books as an American hero who changed the course of history,” the celebrities say. In the unlikely event that Trump does not receive 270 votes, the election [would be sent to the House of Representatives](http://time.com/4560682/faithless-electors/) for a vote in January. [_Read More:_ What Happens If Faithless Electors Swing the Results?](http://time.com/4560682/faithless-electors/) Sheen opens the video with a speech channeling President Bartlet, his character on _The West Wing,_ explaining the purpose of the Electoral College: “As you know, our founding fathers built the Electoral College to safeguard the American people from the dangers of a demagogue, and to ensure that the presidency only goes to someone who is to ‘an eminent degree endowed with the requisite qualifications.'” The group [Unite for America](https://www.uniteforamerica.org/) posted the video on YouTube. ## Transcript Republican members of the Electoral College, this message is for you. As you know, our founding fathers built the Electoral College to safeguard the American people from the dangers of a demagogue and to ensure that the presidency only goes to someone who is, to an eminent degree endowed with the requisite qualifications. An eminent degree, someone who is highly qualified for the job. The electoral college was created specifically to prevent an unfit candidate from becoming president. There are 538 members of the electoral college. You- And just 36 other conscientious Republican electors can make a difference. By voting your conscience. On December 19th. And thereby shaping the future of our nation. I'm not asking you to vote for Hillary Clinton. I'm not asking you to vote for Hillary Clinton. I'm not asking you to vote for Hillary Clinton. As you know, the Constitution gives the electors the right to vote for any eligible person. Any eligible person, no matter which party they belong to. But it should certainly be someone you consider especially competent. Especially competent to serve as president of the United States of America. By voting our conscience, you and other brave Republican electors can give the House of Representatives the option to select a qualified candidate for the presidency. I stand with you. I stand with you. I stand with you. I stand with you in support and solidarity with conservatives, independents and liberals. And all citizens of the United States. The American people trust that your voice speaks for us all. And that you will make yourself heard through the constitutional responsibility granted to you by Alexander Hamilton himself. But is eminent is that Donald Trump lack more than the qualifications to be president . >> He lacks the necessary stability. And clearly the respect for the constitution of our great nation. You have position, The authority, And the opportunity to go down in the books as an American hero Will change the course of history. And you have my respect. You have my respect. You have my respect. For your patriotism. And service to the American people. Unite for America. 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