In traditional politics, political figures endorsing other political figures doesn't count for that much, unless it's a controversial one. We've been seeing a number of former and current Republican office holders throwing their support to Vice President Harris. It's not a big secret that the Vice President would like the explicit endorsements of such cultural and music giants as Beyoncé and Taylor Swift. Beyoncé has already sent strong signals that she's supporting Harris and may fundraise for her. When Swift endorsed President Biden in 2020, she drove hundreds of thousands of her fans to register to vote. A Harvard University study assessed the impact of celebrity endorsements, as reported by the New York Daily News:
"A Harvard University study examining the influence of stars such as Taylor Swift, Billie Eilish, Trevor Noah and Kerry Washington found that celebrities can impact American elections and strengthen democracy without hurting their own brand.
'While some polling shows that people claim they aren’t influenced by celebrity voices when it comes to politics, more rigorous evidence indicates that these voices are incredibly powerful,' according to the recently published 52-page report from Harvard’s Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation.
'This potential impact is why nonprofits, candidates, and elected officials are increasingly seeking ways to engage celebrities,' the study said. [snip]
While Swift hasn’t expressly endorsed a candidate in the 2024 election, she supported the Democratic duo of Joe Biden and Kamala Harris in 2020. Her popularity has only grown as she winds down the highest-grossing concert tour in history, during which some believe she subtly endorsed Harris on a recent stop in Poland."
The Democratic National Convention begins Monday, August 19, and the Dems have been generally quiet about who will show up from the music / entertainment industry letting the suspense build. (Having superstars there to endorse Harris - Walz would drive the celebrity-obsessed Orange Turd ballistic). Busy schedules may prevent either Beyoncé or Taylor* from appearing other than on a tape, but performances by either or both would electrify the Convention and energize even more Gen Z voters for the Dem ticket.
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* Not to speculate much, but Taylor's Eras Tour takes a three month break starting on August 18.
(photo: Mason Poole / Rolling Stone Magazine)
