On September 11, singer Taylor Swift announced her support for US Vice President Kamala Harris, just minutes after the debate between Ms. Harris and former President Donald Trump ended. “Like many of you, I watched the debate tonight. I will be voting for Ms. Kamala Harris and Mr. Tim Walz in the 2024 presidential election,” the singer wrote on Instagram, referring to the debate organized by ABC News in Pennsylvania on the evening of September 10 (local time, the morning of September 11, Vietnam time).
“I’m voting for Harris because she fights for rights and causes that I believe require a fighter to achieve. I think she’s a strong, capable leader and I believe we can achieve so much more in this country if we’re led by calm, not chaos,” she wrote.
According to CNBC, the singer signed the message and also “taunted” Republican vice presidential candidate JD Vance by adding the words “childless cat lady.” The phrase was used by Mr. Vance to refer to women in the Democratic Party and caused him to be criticized.
Singer Taylor Swift also mentioned the artificial intelligence (AI) image that faked her support for Mr. Trump, expressing concerns about misinformation. “This has led me to the conclusion that I need to be very transparent about my actual plans for this election as a voter,” she wrote.
According to Reuters, polls show a tight race between Democratic candidate, US Vice President Kamala Harris, and Republican candidate, former US President Donald Trump, and Taylor Swift’s announcement has helped Harris receive the biggest support in the entertainment industry. Along with Taylor Swift, many Hollywood actors, producers and filmmakers have said they consider Harris, a native Californian, to be their hometown candidate.
According to Mark Wheeler, professor of political communication at London Metropolitan University, women’s votes matter, so Taylor Swift’s choice will influence the decisions of young female voters. Before the singer spoke out, her fan community formed an organization called Swifties for Kamala to support the campaign, exchanging friendship bracelets in support of Ms. Harris. The project’s Instagram currently has more than 45,000 followers.
Experts say celebrity endorsements can have a tangible impact on voter choice, but it’s hard to quantify exactly how much of an impact there is because of the many variables involved. But in a tight election, celebrity endorsements could be game-changing in some key states, especially for those who haven’t yet chosen a side.
David J. Jackson, a political science professor at Bowling Green State University, explains that her voice is credible because of her status and the love of her fan base. He also argues that artists who are selective in publicly supporting their political parties tend to “carry more weight” than those who speak out frequently. “As a public figure, the ability to express political views selectively, strategically, and carefully can increase the importance,” the professor argues.
Taylor Swift is often cautious about political issues, limiting her personal views. With a large fan base, her stance attracts a lot of attention. She first campaigned for two Democratic candidates in her home state of Tennessee’s 2018 election on Instagram, increasing the number of voters. In September 2023, she called for people to register to vote on her Instagram story, which was recorded by the Vote.org system as a 22.5% increase in participation compared to the previous year, with a 1,226% increase in registration within an hour of posting.
Meanwhile, in June, the biography Apprentice in Wonderland: How Donald Trump and Mark Burnett Took America Through the Looking Glass , written by Variety co-editor-in-chief Ramin Setoodeh, officially went on sale. According to Variety, an excerpt from the book revealed Mr. Trump’s thoughts on Taylor Swift. Despite constantly emphasizing the singer’s appearance, Mr. Trump showed no sympathy for her. According to the Republican candidate, he did not know how good Taylor Swift’s music was.
In August, the Republican presidential candidate continued to share edited images on the social network Truth Social, including one of pop superstar Taylor Swift dressed as Uncle Sam (a nickname for America and a symbol of patriotism), asking her fans to vote for Mr. Trump. Other photos showed women wearing T-shirts with the slogan “Swifties for Trump.” “I agree,” the former president wrote with the post.
Hany Farid, a digital expert at the University of California, Berkeley, said the images “could have been created using AI or edited in a classic way.” Farid said the way the photos were created was “particularly cunning” in that they combined real and fake images, with at least one photo of the woman wearing the shirt looking very real. The former president’s post was ridiculed by the singer’s fans, with some even calling for her to sue Mr. Trump.
Taylor Swift, 34 years old, has just won the world’s most prestigious music award, Grammy, and is one of the most famous and successful artists in the United States. Taylor Swift has more than 280 million followers on Instagram, mostly young people, with liberal, open and progressive views, which are completely opposite and incompatible with the mainstream views of the Republican Party and Mr. Trump personally.
Of course, no single artist can decide the outcome of America’s most important election, but Taylor Swift is clearly capable of having some impact, so candidates shouldn’t take it lightly. “Taylor Swift has the potential to influence the middle class – the undecided. I think it will be very limited, but it could be pivotal in very close states,” said Mark Harvey, associate professor at St. Mary’s University and author of Celebrity Influence.
