Poll: Do celebrity endorsements sway your vote?

Oprah Obama 2008.jpg
Then-Democratic presidential hopeful Barack Obama gets a hug from Oprah Winfrey during a rally on Dec. 8, 2007, in Des Moines, Iowa. (AP photo)
The Jersey Journal By The Jersey Journal The Jersey Journal
on October 10, 2013 at 5:27 AM

Eli Manning hasn't exactly come out and endorsed Hoboken Mayor Dawn Zimmer for re-election, but his attendance at a fund-raising event sure enough was at least a tacit nod of approval from the New York Giants quarterback.

But will it mean much when the Hoboken voters go to the polls on Nov. 5 to elect a mayor and three at-large city council members? Does Eli know something you don't if you happen to like Assemblyman Ruben Ramos or Councilman Tim Occhipinti as yur next leader?

Celebrities have been used for years to try to validate a candidate in the minds of the voters. Oprah Winfrey is given at least a small share of credit in getting President Barack Obama elected in 2008. If Oprah said she liked it, that was good enough for her flock of sheep, err, we mean fans.

On the national stage movie stars have gotten into the act, mostly because the public somehow (don't ask us why) wants to hear their opinion on the topics of the day -- even if most of them are clueless.

One of Zimmer's challengers decided to pen an open letter to Eli Manning's brother, Peyton, the quarterback of the Denver Broncos. The aim of the letter by Occhipinti was asking Peyton to "talk sense into" Eli, but all it amounted to was a bashing of an 0-5 QB who thinks the mayor is the best choice for Hoboken residents.

Will the star power work for Zimmer? Who knows. Maybe with the Giants at 0-5, the people of the Mile Square City are turning into Jets fans.