Jay Michaels
VP candidate for Independent (1984)
Running mate with nominee: Bill Collins (b. ca1953)
Popular vote: ? (0.00%)
Electoral vote: 0/538
The campaign:
From the South Florida Sun Sentinel (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.) Mar. 28, 1984:
A presidential election year provides radio and TV audiences with many things, among them those interminable press conferences, debates, campaign ads and endlessly repeated slogans. And, of course, the occasional media figure who rightly decides that announcing his "candidacy" is a useful publicity gimmick.
Bill Collins, 31, is a local disc jockey who has the morning shift at country music station WKQS (FM 99.9) and decided to become this year's Pat Paulsen, for South Florida anyway. With his running mate Jay Michaels, he wants to abolish the defense budget (and move the United States while the Russians are asleep), reschedule all presidential press conferences for 2 a.m. ("We're sick of them screwing up prime time"), relocate the White House to Dania, and possibly implement a four-hour work week (but in the meantime, they'll settle for giving Wednesday off to everyone but doctors).
Collins, who came to KISS-FM last August from Wichita, Kan. ("It took me about 10 minutes to get used to the weather"), would probably agree that most of this appears funnier on the radio, delivered by him, than it does here in print. It's your move, friends.
Collins was below the age of 35, making him ineligible to become President in the event he won the election. Michaels, aka "The Doctor of Morning Madness," was possibly also below the age of 35 at the time. Also, both being residents of the same state was another Constitutional complication. Their campaign appeared to be limited to the radio airwaves of the Fort Lauderdale area.
Election history: none
Other occupations: radio disc jockey, voice-over actor, actor, cruise ship MC, television programmer
Notes:
His career started in Philadelphia and has taken him to Florida, Los Angeles, and the Bahamas.
