Obama to Appear on 'The Daily Show' in Effort to Court Youth Vote

In his latest effort to reach young voters before the midterm elections in two weeks, President Obama will appear on "The Daily Show" with John Stewart on Oct. 27, according to CBS News.

The appearance on the Comedy Central program will be Obama's first since being elected president (though he was a guest several times while still a senator and a candidate for president). Vice President Joe Biden appeared on the show in November 2009.

The timing of the commander in chief's appearance on a program particularly popular among those ages 18-34 is intended to boost enthusiasm among young voters -- who were a considerable part of Obama's base in 2008, but who traditionally stay at home during the midterms. In 2006, only 26.6 percent of voters ages 18-29 showed up at the polls, which was an improvement in turnout compared to the previous two midterm elections.

Obama's appearance will occur less than a week before election day, and three days before Stewart's rally to "Restore Sanity" on the National Mall. The event is planned as a response to conservative pundit Glenn Beck's "Restoring Honor" rally, which took place Aug. 28. Stewart's conservative alter-ego, Stephen Colbert, is hosting a mock response rally the same day, dubbed "The March to Keep Fear Alive."

Of late, the president has been making a concerted effort to woo the 18-29-year-old voting group, dubbed "millennials." Beginning with a campaign-style rally at the University of Wisconsin last month, he has since held a town hall meeting with students at George Washington University, another town hall sponsored by the youth-focused MTV networks, and a large campaign-style event at Ohio State University last weekend.

The impact of the president's efforts is unclear -- and will remain so until Nov. 3. His own approval ratings among this chosen demographic, however, remain relatively strong: As of last week, Obama carried a 54 percent approval rating among millennials, nearly 10 points higher than his national average.