Mike Huckabee Parodies Adele’s ‘Hello’ In Last-Ditch Attempt To Impress Iowans

In a last-ditch attempt at votes and relevance, former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee released a campaign ad styled as a parody of Adele’s “Hello,” meant to showcase how well Huck understands Iowa, which willl hold the nation’s first primary caucus on Feb 1.

The three-and-a-half-minute video features lots of closeups of the Republican presidential candidate, mostly talking into an iPhone in a cold, barren landscape, interspersed with snow-crusted road shots and Huckabee on the campaign trail. Other presidential candidates – both Republicans and Democrats – make appearances.

The video doesn’t quite succeed as either a full-fledged homage or recruitment tool. It patronizes the locals – “Iowans are not for sale, they’re stubborn and picky,” sings an uncredited female – and the phrasing sometimes strains against the melody of the song. Huckabee’s “singing” doesn’t sync with the lyrics, which are helpfully captioned at the bottom of the video – though the captions are often out of sync, too.

Adele’s “Hello” is the first single from her hotly anticipated third album, 25,which broke sales records the week it was released, selling 3.38 million copies, an unheard-of amount in an age where few true-blue albums are sold. (The number reflects digital and physical sales.) The album – and its singles – have continued to break all sorts of records. In other words, Huckabee chose the safest possible video to parody.

The British singer is widely known for having an absurdly large fan base that crosses all demographics. Huckabee, who will be in the undercard debate Jan. 28, has had low poll numbers throughout the campaign. He bowed out of the 2008 race after losing the primaries in Texas, Ohio, Vermont and Rhode Island to John McCain, although he had done well in the Iowa caucuses.

Watch below:

Hat tip: Mother Jones

Photo: Mike Huckabee, trying to entice Iowans in a still from his “Hello” parody. Mike Huckabee For President/YouTube