But can the 34-year-old’s endorsement really move the needle? Experts and analysis of recent electoral data suggest it just might. When it comes to presidential elections, most analysts agree that celebrity endorsements typically don’t hold much sway. In a 2022 survey, 45 per cent of Americans said they did not agree with stars making political statements, while earlier this year, 11 per cent of Swift’s own fans said she should “definitely not” lend public support to any candidate.
But when you reach a certain stratum of stardom, there are exceptions. Oprah Winfrey, with her almost unparalleled reach, won Barack Obama an estimated one million extra votes when she endorsed him in 2008. This year, it could be Swift – Miss Americana, the most powerful woman in pop, if not in the whole of America – fresh from the European leg of her record-breaking, economy-boosting Eras tour, who shifts voters into gear. Following her Instagram post on Tuesday night, the Harris campaign put Eras tour-inspired Harris/Walz friendship bracelets up on its website. They sold out within 24 hours.
Meanwhile, thousands of young voters raced to sign up and have their own say later this year. Between 9pm and midnight on Tuesday evening, there was a 585 per cent spike in traffic on registration site Vote.org, compared to the same time interval over the previous eight days.