WASHINGTON – Vice President Kamala Harris went viral after asking about a coconut tree . Now, she's getting her very own coconut ice cream.
MoveOn, a progressive public policy advocacy group, is partnering with Ben & Jerry's co-founders Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield to release a special Kamala Harris-inspired ice cream flavor. They'll also take an ice cream truck on tour in key battleground states as part of a push to register voters.
The " Scoop the Vote " free ice cream truck tour kicks off on Monday in Philadelphia – with Cohen and Greenfield – and will make 20 stops in states that will likely help decide the election, including Michigan, Wisconsin, Arizona and Nevada. Limited edition pints of “Kamala’s Coconut Jubilee,” a coconut flavored ice cream layered with caramel and topped with red, white and blue star sprinkles, will be raffled off at the stops .
Rahna Epting, executive director of MoveOn, exclusively told USA TODAY the tour is an effort to engage voters – particularly ones who aren't necessarily planning to vote – to register or cast their ballot in the 2024 presidential election.
“There's a ton of folks that are already tuned into this election, and then there's a vast, vast set of folks that aren't,” Epting said, adding that even non-political activities, like getting ice cream, can engage Americans.
Harris and former President Donald Trump are locked into a close race after President Joe Biden dropped out of the presidential election in late July. While Harris holds a slight lead nationally against Trump, the two candidates are close in several battleground states.
Harris holds a small lead over Trump in Wisconsin, 50% to 44%, and Michigan, 48% to 43%, according to CNN polls conducted by SSRS that were published last week.
The polls found that Harris and Trump are in a dead heat – meaning no clear winner – in Georgia, Nevada and Pennsylvania. Trump is leading Harris in Arizona, 49% to 44%.
“Kamala’s Coconut Jubilee,” a special ice cream flavor being created by Ben & Jerry's co-founders Ben Cohen, is packaged as part of a collaboration with MoveOn, a progressive advocacy group. Courtesy of MoveOn/USA TODAY
If potential voters stop by the ice cream truck, they aren’t just going to get a free scoop. Epting said volunteers are going to be speaking about the election and policies that are top of mind for voters, such as the economy and reproductive rights.
“We're not going to win this election through New York Times op-eds. We're not going to win this election through pushing out smart tweets,” she said. “We're going to win this election by actually talking to the voters that we know that if they turn out to vote, they are way more likely to vote for Harris-Walz than Donald Trump.”
Some of the other ice cream flavors available on the truck are a play on additional Harris memes, like the “Unburdened by what has Vanilla Bean,” or a reference to policies, like the “Fight For Our Rights Sorbet.”
Cohen created the Harris-inspired ice cream flavor and is releasing it under the "Ben's Best" label, which is not affiliated with the Ben & Jerry's brand. He said he got involved because there are many who believe it’s time for the United States to get “back on the right track.”
“I want to get a common decency at a minimum in the White House,” Cohen told USA TODAY. “I want someone who supports people of all races, all genders. And I think Kamala is a person who supports people. She doesn't try to make herself bigger by putting other people down.”
In his kitchen with a tabletop ice cream maker, Cohen and Greenfield hand made the coconut ice cream, mixed up the caramel swirl and packaged 40 pints of the special Harris flavor. Not before, of course, they topped it with the star sprinkles, which is the jubilee part, Cohen said.
Greenfield said he believes there’s been a renewed energy among Democrats with Harris at the top of the ticket, one that could bring more people into voting and the political process. Losing that momentum is one of the things he fears will be jeopardy in another Trump presidency.
This isn't the first time Cohen and Greenfield have created a special ice cream flavor in support of a candidate.
Cohen in 2016 released a special flavor in support of Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., who was running for president at the time. He released another limited edition flavor for Sanders in 2019 .
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