Girls Everywhere

Girls Everywhere

VP candidate for Party of Girls (2004)

Running mate with nominee: Barbie Millicent Roberts (b. 1959)
Popular vote: ? (0.00%)
Electoral vote: 0/538

The campaign:

It was the third Presidential campaign of Mattel's Barbie doll, but for the first time she ran under the banner of a political party, the Party of Girls. It was also the first time she had a running-mate, sort of. Her Vice-Presidential choice was "Girls Everywhere."

Barbie's platform was quite simple: "create world peace, help the homeless and poor, and take care of animals."

Mattel partnered with Toys R Us as part of the marketing campaign, even holding a Party of Girls "convention" in New York City in Aug. 2004. Another sponsor was a nonprofit called The White House Project. The pitch was that Candidate Barbie would encourage girls to seek leadership roles. Some critics through the years have pointed out that due to Barbie's surreal and unattainable physicality, her electioneering was sending mixed messages.

There were two problems with the Barbie/Girls Everywhere ticket in the event they won the election. First, Barbie herself was a plastic toy, i.e. not a sentient being. Secondly, the Vice-Presidency has the same age requirement as the President-- 35-- and by their very definition "Girls Everywhere" fall short of that. Also, there does not seem to be a provision for multiple people (especially millions of people) holding that office at the same time.

Election history: none

Other occupations: girls

Notes:
Whenever I went into the Barbie aisle of Toys R Us in the 1990s with my daughter it took my eyes some time to recover from the overwhelming barrage of hot pink.

Barbie Millicent Roberts

Barbie Millicent Roberts, March 9, 1959 (Willows, Wis.) -

VP candidate for USA interParty (aka interParty) (2000)
VP candidate for Independent (2016)
VP candidate for Independent (OTC) (2016)

Running mate with nominee (2000): Raymond Kenneth Petry
Running mate with nominee (2016): Barbie Millicent Roberts (b. 1959)
Running mate with nominee (2016): Drunk Menopausal Barbie (b. 1959)
Popular vote (2000, 2016): ? (0.00%)
Electoral vote (2000, 2016): 0/538
 

The campaign (2000):

Raymond K. Petry of Honolulu had run for President in 1992 and 1996, but in 2000 he made a concerted effort to be drafted as Vice-President instead. No one took him up on his offer so he relaunched as a Presidential candidate under the USA interParty banner. According to his webpage, "Barbi" [i.e. Barbie] was nominated as his VP, presumably for the Barbie and Ken humor value: "Petry is leading the interplanetary space effort in this decade, and America is not going alone: Barbi has been nominated for Vice President: Sign the on-line Petition to put Ken and Barbi on the Ballot in your State."

Citing Manifest Destiny, Petry advocated expanding the space program for colonization of the Moon, Mars, and even Pluto.

"With a bit of web-clatter the oval office is being prepared for Mr. Petry: We're culling and gleening for Election year AD 2000 ... and, Mr. Petry is preparing himself to run for the Presidency - an unprecedented move: the former VeeP candidate is going for the Presidency - [maybe just to be VeeP] - so, this'll be extra challenging for Mr. Petry - he's been acting as President for the next four years, now he's ready for office in AD 2001 - Mr. Petry has proven to America that he's a better President than any of them, and that America has been better-off in four years with him acting President - so, America will let him take office ... and if America ever needed a government-within-the-government, this is it: Mr. Petry is ready."

As a reflection of his background and interest in mathematics, much of Petry's platform was science-based.

Meanwhile Barbie, full name Barbie Millicent Roberts, was already running for President in 2000 on her own and fending off a challenge from the Vanessa/Eva doll ticket.

The campaign (2016):

OK, I'm not sure how this works but Barbie was her own running-mate, sort of a split-personality thing. Not unlike Austin Burton serving as his own VP nominee in 1976.

In the year where Hillary Clinton was the Democratic nominee, Mattel spokesperson told the press, "The President and Vice President dolls continue our efforts to expose girls to inspiring careers that are underrepresented by women ... We see this doll set as a timely and topical platform to further the conversation around female leadership."

Mattel had worked with She Should Run, "a nonpartisan nonprofit working to dramatically increase the number of women considering a run for public office" in the development of the dolls.

VP Barbie's main difference from Presidential Barbie was that she wore glasses.

The campaign (2016 : OTC):

The OTC Comedy Troupe is based in Georgia and has an online presence via Youtube. In Sept.-Oct. 2016 actress Kelley Cody-Grimm presented a campaign running her "Drunk Menopausal Barbie" character for President.

Using the slogan, "Let's make America fabulous," Drunk Menopausal Barbie presented an African American Barbie doll as the Vice Presidential nominee.

Election history:
1992 - US President (Independent) - defeated
2000 - US President (Independent) - defeated
2004 - US President (Party of Girls) - defeated
2008 - US President (Independent) - defeated
2012 - US President (B Party) - defeated
2016 - US President (Independent) - defeated
2016 - US President (Independent : OTC) - defeated

Other occupations: over 200 careers

Notes:
Barbie sat out the 1996 Presidential election, and seems to be in 2020 as well, so far.

Eva

Eva, February 1999 (Philadelphia, Penn.) -

VP candidate for Surprise Party (2000)

Running mate with nominee: Vanessa (b. 1999)
Popular vote: ? (0.00%)
Electoral vote: 0/538

The campaign:

Vanessa was an 11 and a half inch doll created by Jennifer Baker. The doll was portrayed as a college educated African-American woman and was part of a multicultural package. The dolls as a group were known as the Get Set Club, but collectors called them the G5 due to their names Gia, Fiona, Isabella, Vanessa, and Eva. Unlike the Barbie dolls, Baker's creations were closer to resembling real human beings. The Eva doll appeared to be of Nordic heritage.

In the planning stages since the mid-1990s, the dolls were introduced to the world at the Toy Fair in New York, Feb. 1999.

When Mattel decided to run the Barbie doll for President again in 2000, as they had in 1992, Baker responded to the competition in a clever marketing tactic by announcing Vanessa's entry to the race. But Vanessa had something Barbie did not-- a running-mate and Cabinet appointments: Eva (Vice-President), Isabella (Secretary of State), Gia (Secretary of Treasury) and Fiona (Surgeon General).

Baker told the media in late June 2000, "It's about time we had a candidate who actually does something. She's more than just pretty in pink. She's smart. She's independent. She's the only candidate in this campaign who can stand on her own two feet and I mean that, literally." The Vanessa/Eva ticket ran under the Surprise Party, which was also the name Gracie Allen used for her party in 1940 as well as John O'Leary in 1984.

Aside from being dolls, Vanessa and Eva were way under the age of 35 in 2000, making them ineligible in any case to take office in the event of their victory. Unfortunately, the Get Set Club seemed to have had only a brief commercial existence but did manage to make a mark in history during that window of time.

Election history: none

Other occupations: doll

Notes:
The G5 dolls appear to be highly collectible these days.