Wayne Avrashow
Feb 24, 2021 10:20 PM ET
Despite that sobering example, the lingering question is whether any Democrat will risk a similar fate. You never know who might take the plunge. In my recently published novel, a fictional Las Vegas-based rock star named Tyler Sloan runs for office as an independent for a Nevada Senate seat. Could a Sloan-like candidate emerge — a celebrity who could match Schwarzenegger’s appeal?
This celebrity candidate wouldn’t have to come from Hollywood. What about a super-wealthy entrepreneur who does not care about the repercussions within the Democratic Party because he has no traditional path to political office anyway? The examples that come to mind are billionaires Michael Bloomberg and Tom Steyer, both of whom tried to buy their way to the Democratic presidential nomination last year. Bloomberg is a confirmed New Yorker, but Steyer, although born in Manhattan, put down roots and made his fortune in San Francisco, Gavin Newsom’s hometown.