The daytime stars are getting candid this election season.
The ladies of The Real know how to live up to their show’s title -- they’re not afraid to get real about tough topics.
Now in its third season, the daytime talker is tackling bigger issues than ever before. ET sat down with co-hosts Tamera Mowry-Housley, Jeannie Mai, Loni Love and Adrienne Bailon, and got the ladies’ take on why it’s important to speak out on TV, especially in an election year.
“We want to voice that it’s so essential for people to vote,” Mai says. “This is the most heated election I think we’ve ever had in the history of the United States, as long as I’ve lived. If you really don’t like what you see out there, then you have the chance to change it.”
WATCH: Adrienne Bailon Dishes on Wedding Planning, Prepping With Her The Real Co-Hosts
“To people who are undecided, it’s very important for you to really find topics, policies, issues that are important to you, and vote,” Mowry-Housley adds. “Vote based on that. Don’t not vote. Absolutely use that power that we have that so many people fought for us to have that.”
“We’re not telling people who to vote for,” Love notes. “This is what I like about our show. We’re just stressing the importance of voting and why it’s important to vote. Our show is about being fun, it’s about being inspiring, so that’s what we’re trying to do.”
The ladies continued to spark the conversation surrounding sexual assault earlier this month, when Bailon revealed she had been subjected to repeated sexual harassment by someone she used to work with.
MORE: Tamera Mowry-Housley Learns Her Ancestors May Have Been Slaves
“Honestly, I hope it just encouraged other people to have an open platform about talking about these things that women shouldn’t feel ashamed about,” Bailon shares. “Right is right and wrong is wrong, and you should speak up about it. You shouldn’t be afraid that, you know, it’s gonna cost you your job.”
“Somebody did something to you that you feel uncomfortable about, you should be able to voice that,” she continues. “I just hope that me saying it, saying, ‘Hey, this is something that we go through, that people go through. I go through it, you go through it,’ then it can make somebody comfortable enough to voice that it happened to them.”
“We take what’s happening in this country and then we can use it as a jump-off point,” Love says. “We were able to, you know, ask a question to ourselves about sexual assault and how we feel about it … and now we’re pulling out stories that we didn’t even know about.”
The stars say they plan to continue talking openly and honestly about these big issues, admitting there’s no topic off limits.
“Everything’s pretty much free game,” Mai confesses.
Check your local listings to see when you can catch The Real weekdays in your city. For more of ET’s visit -- which was in honor of The Real Housewives of Atlanta takeover week -- check out the video below.