By Danielle Emerson
Staff Writer
Posted: January 13, 2017 3:59 PM

Secretary of State Ruth Johnson has a new, non-native sidekick that wants to save you time by going online to expresssos.com for your typical Secretary of State needs.

“Kangaruth” debuted on YouTube two days ago and is getting some attention on social media with almost 2,000 views so far. The video features various clips of Secretary of State Ruth Johnson “rapping” about saving time and hopping online, complete with a kangaroo that is edited into the video throughout.

And yes, the kangaroo is real, so when Ms. Johnson appears to be leaning on it toward the end of the full video and it gives her a nibble, it actually happened.

“The secretary has a friend that had access to a kangaroo, and one thing led to another, and someone got the idea to encourage customers to ‘hop online,’” Department of State spokesperson Fred Woodhams told Gongwer News Service.

The video was produced in-house.

“I know that will surprise you,” Mr. Woodhams joked. “It’s something we’ve been working on. It’s light-hearted. People are definitely talking about it and will remember it.”

The full-version video is roughly a minute and a half, but there are shortened versions that will indeed be used to advertise expresssos.com. Mr. Woodhams said the department doesn’t usually do advertising but it made a small cable television ad buy – costing less than $10,000 – for this one. It will run for a few days and was intended to coincide with the North American International Auto Show in Detroit.

“We’re making do with fewer staff and need to encourage people to go online to do their secretary of state business,” Mr. Woodhams said. “The more people that can go online, they will not only help themselves but other customers who might be required to come in for a photo, for example.”

As someone who will have to renew her tabs at the end of the month, I only wish there might also be a follow-up video with Ms. Johnson and her kangaroo thanking me for using the online service. Just a suggestion, though.