Jeff Barker
CHICAGO — Gov. Wes Moore recoiled when asked the question, as if confronted with a vexing policy decision.
“Ooooh,” the governor replied in a Baltimore Sun interview when asked which celebrity he most hopes to encounter at the Democratic National Convention, which is thick with Hollywood and music industry stars.
Beyoncé maybe? Taylor Swift?
“Why do we have to choose?” Moore said, smiling. “It’s a false choice!”
Nominating conventions are serious business. The Democratic Party, led by presidential nominee Kamala Harris, is putting its brand on display to the nation with 11 weeks before the election.
At the same time, Harris has already secured the nomination — that came in a virtual roll call before the convention began — and she and running mate Tim Walz keep touting “joy” as a campaign theme.
So delegates — particularly Star Wars fans — can be forgiven for being as excited to spot actor Mark Hamill as a senator they have never heard of.
Hamill, the original “Luke Skywalker,” joins a long list of entertainers in Chicago that includes singer John Legend, actors Kerry Washington, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Mindy Kaling, Tony Goldwyn, Lisa Ann Walter and many more.
Movie fans in Maryland’s delegation are hopeful that others who have publicly supported Harris — including “American Fiction” star Jeffrey Wright and “Homeland” and “The Princess Bride” actor Mandy Patinkin — may arrive as well.
Hamill is himself a fan of Maryland’s governor.
“Dear Gov. Wes Moore,” Hamill posted on X last month. “The Force is Strong with this one.”
Most of the buzz is not on who is here, but who could suddenly appear on the stage at the United Center, where the 118 Maryland delegates are enviably positioned right up front.
If it were a rock concert, Maryland would have the priciest seats.
Maryland delegate Courtney Finklea Green has a vision for how things could play out on Thursday, the convention’s final day.
“Beyoncé,” she said flatly.
Finklea Green, an official in the Maryland Treasurer’s office overseeing college investment plans, notes that Harris has been using “Freedom,” a Beyoncé song that includes rapper Kendrick Lamar, in her campaign.
“To me it makes perfect sense” that Beyoncé would perform, she said. “Who doesn’t like Beyoncé?”
“We know she’s going to play at the inauguration” if Harris wins, said Luca Amayo, the Maryland Democratic Party spokesman. “Is it too much to ask for her to be here?”
Moore, who has become something of a celebrity himself within the national party, said it’s important to remember that “the biggest celebrity in the building during this convention would be Vice President Harris.”
But what if, The Sun asked the governor, the lights came up Thursday night … and there was Beyoncé ready to sing?
“That would be pretty awesome,” Moore said.
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