‘West Wing’ and ‘Veep’ Casts to Reunite for Virtual Fundraiser to Benefit Wisconsin Democrats

Wisconsin Democrats are getting another election season boost from Hollywood.

Castmembers from The West Wing and Veep are confirmed to appear during a live-streamed WisDems fundraiser on Oct. 9. Per intel from those involved, the event will feature games, jokes, performances and other entertainment. A donation of any dollar amount returns a link to watch and participate in the event.

Joining the event will be West Wing stars Bradley Whitford, Martin Sheen, Allison Janney, Richard Schiff, Mary McCormack, Janel Moloney and Melissa Fitzgerald, along with Veep stars Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Anna Chlumsky, Tony Hale, Matt Walsh, Gary Cole and Tim Simons.

The showing follows a slew of events held in support of the party in the battleground state in the run-up to the 2020 election, jumpstarted by Wisconsin native Whitford. He had participated in fundraisers for Wisconsin Democrats for decades, according to Ben Wikler, chair of the Democratic Party of Wisconsin, and pivoted to online events amid the pandemic. Veep insiders Louis-Dreyfus and showrunner David Mandel were instrumental in mounting similar events, including efforts for WisDems and in Georgia on behalf of America Votes, among many others.

“We have joined forces with The West Wing because winning Wisconsin this November is crucial to saving American democracy,” Louis-Dreyfus tells The Hollywood Reporter. “And also because when MAGA Republicans are beaten and democracy thrives and flourishes, Veep seems much funnier and less sad.”

For his part, Whitford nodded to both the plot of his show The West Wing with the Bartlet administration (headed by Sheen’s Josiah “Jed” Bartlet) and Veep’s Meyer administration (headed by Louis-Dreyfus’ Selina Meyer).

“The Bartlet administration represented everything that politics should be. The Meyer administration represented everything that it shouldn’t,” Whitford noted. “The West Wing also had, especially among supporting characters, a far more physically attractive cast. Despite these differences, we are teaming up to support Democratic candidates up and down the ballot in my home state of Wisconsin. Join us. We’re gonna have a lot of fun, and we’re gonna do everything we can to save democracy while we’re at it.”

More information about the event can be found here.