US Election 2024: Although Taylor Swift is a cultural phenomenon, will she impact the US presidential election? The ‘Lover’ singer backed US Vice President and Democratic presidential contender Kamala Harris on Wednesday. She included a link to information about voter registration and polling dates in her social media post.
More than 3 lakh individuals are said to have visited vote.gov, a website that provides information on voting rights, as a result of her endorsement. Instead of registering users to vote, the website sends them to the websites of their local state elections for more detailed voting information.
The increase in website traffic is seen to be an indication of the possible impact Swift’s declaration may have on the election in November.
According to reports from the US Government Services Administration, 3,37,826 individuals visited vote.gov due to Swift’s Instagram endorsement post.
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Taylor Swift encourages voters to register and supports Kamala
This occurred some hours following the Wednesday, around 6:30 am (IST), the start of Kamala Harris and Donald Trump’s first US presidential debate. Swift said on Instagram that she would be supporting Harris and her Democratic running mate, Governor Tim Walz, in the election.
Swift also urged US citizens to cast their vote. She wrote, “I’ve done my research, and I’ve made my choice. Your research is all yours to do, and the choice is yours to make. I also want to say, especially to first-time voters: Remember that to vote, you have to be registered! I also find it’s much easier to vote early. I’ll link where to register and find early voting dates and info in my story.”
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Is Taylor Swift able to sway voters in the US election?
Although Taylor Swift has encouraged voters in the past, it is still unclear if she can influence their choice of candidate. Take a peek at what has been stated thus far:
According to a January 2024 Redfield & Wilton Strategies poll for Newsweek, 18% of people say they are “more likely” or “significantly more likely” to vote for a politician who has Swift’s endorsement.
The survey found that while 55% of respondents stated they would be neither more nor less likely to vote for a politician sponsored by Swift, 17% said they would be less likely to do so.
Of all those who answered the survey, 45% claimed to be fans of the singer and 54% stated they weren’t. Just 6% of respondents claimed not to be familiar with Swift.
It’s also argued that even while Swift’s viewpoint is unlikely to change voters’ minds, her influence might increase turnout. The majority of respondents to a Guardian survey (which included close to 500 people) stated that Swift’s support would not affect their vote. Some respondents stated that Swift’s views might affect their behavior, if not their vote, and others claimed that other voters might be more gullible.
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“I’m not influenced by her, but my kids’ generation is,” one person from Massachusetts was quoted as saying. “I’m much too well informed,” someone from Colorado added, “But it WILL affect young people.”
In the meantime, a specialist informed ABC News that “social signaling” might influence voters’ decisions in US elections. Marcus Collins, a marketing lecturer at the University of Michigan, observed, “If you self-identify as someone who sees the world like Taylor Swift does, you might go, ‘Huh, maybe I should be voting like that also’…It almost acts as a warning flag for what would be appropriate for someone such as myself.”
Swift’s significant political endorsement of Democrat Phil Bredesen didn’t do much to aid him in the 2018 midterm elections. Swift’s endorsement proved her impact even if Bredesen lost; Vote.org said that in the 24 hours following Swift’s article, it had gotten approximately 65,000 registrations from voters between the ages of 18 and 29, according to The Independent.
Meanwhile, Lauren Rosewarne, a University of Melbourne professor, told the BBC that Swift’s endorsement could impact voter registration. The report added that Swift’s fan base skews young and female. And that is already the Harris supporter base so her endorsement may not have a big impact come November. “Harris’s main problem lies with male voters…I’m not sure Swift moves them,” said Rosewarne.
If the Taylor Swift effect is as influential as it seems, this could mean a big gain for the Democrats if they can win both states.