US politics expert said Harris’ team would be “very excited” by Swift’s support

Taylor Swift’s support of Vice President Kamala Harris might have a substantial influence on the 2024 election, according to a number of eminent political scientists and pop culture experts.

One professor who has written extensively on Swift’s famous status told Media the globe-striding musician is “one of the most powerful people in the world” and anticipated her support will have a “big impact” on the forthcoming election. An American politics expert predicted Harris’ team would be “hugely buoyed” by Swift’s support, but another warned that most of the artist’s fan base was already inclined to vote for the Democratic candidate.

Following Tuesday’s presidential debate between Harris and Donald Trump, the Republican contender, Swift revealed her support with an Instagram post, writing: “I will be casting my vote for Kamala Harris and Tim Walz in the 2024 Presidential Election. I’m voting for @kamalaharris because she works for the rights and issues I feel require a fighter to promote them. I think she is a steady-handed, skilled leader and I believe we can do so much more in this nation if we are led by serenity and not turmoil.”

She signed the post with “Childless Cat Lady” and attached an image of herself with a cat, in an apparent allusion to statements that Ohio Senator JD Vance, the Republican vice presidential candidate, made in 2021, when he labeled senior Democrats as “a bunch of childless cat ladies.”

Speaking to Media, Georgia Carroll, a researcher in Australia who has done a case study on Swift’s appeal, said a Harris endorsement had been widely expected.

“Most of Taylor’s supporters believed she would back Kamala at some time before the election, with the issue ultimately not being whether, but when. She backed Biden in October 2020, so people were largely expecting her to do it this year,” she added.

Carroll added: “While it was predicted, it will still have a major effect since she is presently one of the most powerful individuals in the world (and considerably more powerful than she was in 2020). Her childless cat lady sign-off will go down in electoral history.”

Mark Shanahan, an American politics specialist at the University of Surrey, told Media that Swift would improve Harris’ popularity among the demographics she needed to win in November.

“Her camp will be hugely buoyed by the decision of the biggest personal brand in global entertainment to endorse the Democrat ticket straight after the candidates left the stage,” he added. “Harris needs a coalition of women, the young and minorities to win this election. Swifties are found in each of the groups.”

Citing the General Services Administration, which handles government communications, CNN said that as of 2 p.m. ET on Wednesday, 337,826 individuals had clicked on a voter registration link Swift shared on Instagram.
An research by the network indicated that there were two major surges in Google searches for “voter registration” in the United States on Tuesday evening.

The first took occurred about 9:44 p.m. ET as the candidates argued on the debate stage on the January 6, 2021, Capitol Hill riot. The second happened about 11 p.m., after Swift’s support of Harris.

Media contacted representatives of Taylor Swift and the Harris and Trump campaigns for comment via email outside normal business hours.

Thomas Gift, a political scientist who leads the Centre of U.S. Politics at University College London, said Swift has an exceptional degree of political power for a celebrity.

He told Media: “Celebrity endorsements normally don’t matter in politics. But Taylor Swift is no ordinary star. She has the potential to change national economies with her tours, so it’s impossible to conclude that her support of Harris won’t have an impact. “At the same time, Swift has long worn her sentiments for Trump on her sleeve, so few fans will be shocked by her decision. Trump will attempt to ‘shake it off,’ but Swift’s appeal, especially among young people, might have an effect on the margins.”

Dafydd Townley, who teaches American politics at the University of Portsmouth, told Media that most Swift followers would likely have voted Harris regardless of what the megastar said.

“While Taylor Swift’s endorsement of Kamala Harris—and her backhanded response to JD Vance’s denigration of female cat owners—has caught the headlines, it is unlikely to cause a considerable surge in Harris’ electability,” he wrote. “The vast majority of Swifties registered to vote, if not all of them, would have likely voted for Harris before the endorsement.”

Townley went on to say that Swift’s remarks may increase voter participation and registration, which would benefit Harris. “What is noteworthy is Swift’s appeal to her supporters to register to vote and come out on Election Day. In an era of political indifference among teenage voters throughout the globe, Swift’s appeal is crucial to guarantee the engagement of America’s youth in their nation’s democratic values,” he added.

According to a May 1 study by Redfield & Wilton Strategies for Media of 1,500 eligible voters, 22% of 2020 Joe Biden supporters said they would be more inclined to support a Republican candidate if Swift backed them. Thirteen percent of 2020 Trump supporters said they would be more inclined to support a Democrat if Swift publicly endorsed them.

A second Media /Redfield & Wilton Strategies survey of 1,750 registered voters conducted on July 29, indicated that 34 percent of Gen Z voters were either “more likely” or “significantly more likely” to vote for a Swift-endorsed candidate. Nonetheless, 26% of respondents in the same age range said they were “less likely” or “significantly less likely” to support a politician endorsed by Swift. Gen Z members can only be 27 years old since their birth years fell between 1997 and 2012.

Swift’s endorsement of Harris came shortly after the Democrat’s presidential campaign unveiled friendship bracelet memorabilia of the kind that Swift’s current Eras tour—which is now the highest-grossing music tour in history—became synonymous with the singer-songwriter.

Vance retaliated against Swift during an interview on Fox News’s The Story after Swift had backed Harris. The Republican vice presidential hopeful said: “We admire Taylor Swift’s music, but I don’t think most Americans—whether they like her music or are fans of hers or not—are going to be influenced by a billionaire celebrity who I think is fundamentally disconnected from the interests and the problems of most Americans. “Let’s face it, most Americans suffer when food costs increase by twenty percent. Taylor Swift is not harmed by it. Either Taylor Swift or any other millionaire is unaffected by excessive house costs. It does have an impact on middle-class Americans nationwide.”

Swift urged readers to do their own research before casting their ballots in her endorsement. She said: “I’ve done my study, and I’ve made my pick. Your study is all yours to undertake, and the decision is yours to make.”
Melissa Jacquart, an associate professor at the University of Cincinnati who offers “an introduction to classic and contemporary philosophical thought through the art and life of Taylor Swift,” stressed this topic while speaking to Media.

“Elections are a time for us to reflect on the motivations behind our own opinions and decisions,” said Jacquart. This is what Taylor is urging in her Instagram post: She is pushing us to conduct our homework and think through and communicate our own reasons. “Most of her fans are young ladies. To believe this is going to be about Taylor’s impact or cause controversy goes against Taylor’s own message and underestimates young women’s capacity to think through this issue for themselves.”