“I discontinued it for a few days to come over here and help you terminate gerrymandering,” Schwarzenegger said.

Ending gerrymandering isn’t a Democratic or Republican issue, he said.

“This has nothing to do with Republicans versus Democrats. I’m a Republican, and I hate gerrymandering; Democrats hate gerrymandering,” Schwarzenegger said. “The politicians for 200 years have kept it a secret. They’ve kept it a secret that they are dividing up the pie in smoky back rooms without anyone knowing. That has to stop.”

Katie Fahey, founder and executive director of Voters Not Politicians, the group behind the ballot initiative, said this is an opportunity for voters to continue movements they began during the 2016 presidential election.

“In Michigan, we had Bernie Sanders win the primaries. His message was political revolution. Donald Trump unexpectedly won the general election with the 'drain the swamp' message,” Fahey said. “To actually drain the swamp, to actually have the political revolution, it takes the people forcing the people who are in charge to be accountable.”

Fahey expressed concern that some voters will accidentally skip the proposal due to its placement on the back of the ballot.

“You want to flip over your ballot and go to the non-partisan section, it’s proposal number two,” Fahey said. “If you like it, you want to vote yes; if you don’t like it, you should skip it or vote no.”

Several candidates for statewide office in Michigan also tailgated outside the rivalry game, including Republican nominee for U.S. Senate John James, Republican gubernatorial candidate Bill Schuette, Democratic gubernatorial candidate Gretchen Whitmer, Democratic Congressional candidate Elissa Slotkin, and several others. 

“This is a great excuse to come out to the big game, see Michiganders from all around the state, and see a great rivalry at its best on a gorgeous Michigan day,” James said.