NY: The Democratic National Convention saw a sprinkling of stardust tonight thanks to speeches from a number of Hollywood actresses.
Scarlett Johansson, Eva Longoria and Kerry Washington all addressed the crowd ahead of President Barack Obama's speech accepting the party's presidential nomination.
The starlets received a rousing reception for their speeches, which focussed on boosting enthusiasm among young people for re-electing the President.
Ms Johansson urged the young to make their voices heard by casting ballots in the 2012 election.
The star of The Avengers told the convention that less than half of all eligible voters between 18 and 24 voted in the presidential election four years ago.
She urged greater participation in the political process, asking: 'Why are we only speaking with half our voice?'
The 27-year-old Ms Johansson says that major issues are at stake for her generation, including access to health care, affordable college tuition and the guarantee of equal pay.
In a direct message to those who are not engaged with politics, she said: 'Vote, so your voice is heard.'
She also talked about her childhood, telling the crowd that her 'lower middle income' family relied on the government for essential services such as education, transport and healthcare.
Ms Johansson concluded with a story about helping her mother vote, saying she would 'take me into the polling booth, and tell me which buttons to press and when to pull the lever'.
She added: 'I remember the excitement I felt in that secret box, and feeling like my mom's vote wasn't just about the candidate, it was about our family - and all the families just like ours.'
Ms Longoria said she changed oil in a mechanic's shop, flipped burgers at Wendy's, and taught aerobics to pay off her college loans.
Mr Obama will ensure that hard work and ambition are rewarded with opportunity, the Desperate Housewives star said.
The President has cut taxes for working Americans and small business owners, Ms Longoria said, while Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney wants to cut taxes for wealthier people like her.
Ms Longoria, a co-chair for Obama's re-election campaign, says she has traveled the country for the President and has been struck by how optimistic people are.
She concluded her speech by talking about Amanda, a friend of hers who started a business and wanted to secure her own name as a website for the company.
'My friend emailed the owner of the site to ask if she could buy it,' the actress said. 'The owner wrote back.
'She is a 13-year-old girl who shares Amanda's name, and politely explained that she could not give up the website. Why? Because the younger Amanda plans to be president of the United States, and she's going to need the website for her campaign.'
Earlier Ms Washington described herself as the granddaughter of Ellis Island immigrants who could not have afforded college without the help of student loans.
The 35-year-old said that people who don't vote risk losing basic rights that their parents and grandparents fought for.
'You may not be thinking about politics, but politics is thinking about you,' the Fantastic Four actress told the crowd.
Ms Washington also used the phrase 'We the people' to set out her vision for society, saying: 'I love that phrase so much.
'Throughout our country's history, we've expanded the meaning of that phrase to include more and more of us. That's what it means to move forward. And that's what this election is all about.'
