Taylor Swift’s endorsement of Kamala Harris could have a real impact on the election…read more

Taylor Swift endorsed Kamala Harris following the presidential debate. Will Swift’s endorsement persuade the undecided voters, and could it have a meaningful impact on the election?

Celebrity endorsements are often overrated.

Voters process a storm of information in their political decision-making, and the voice of a single celebrity can easily get lost in the 24-hour news cycle.

But Swift is not an ordinary celebrity, and her fans are not ordinary fans.

In my research on the Swiftie fandom I have been struck by the ease with which fans form imagined intimate relationships with Swift, treating her as a close friend or confidant, or a proxy mother or daughter.

The term “parasocial relationship” was coined by a pair of psychologists in the 1950s to describe the one-sided relationships people develop with celebrities.

Through her autobiographical songwriting, intimate performance style and clever use of marketing and social media, Swift creates rich opportunities for parasocial relationships to flourish.

Swift is not the only performer to do this, but she does it exceptionally well.

Many critics and scholars consider parasocial relationships to be an unhealthy form of hero worship.

Yet, fans’ intense adoration of and perceived intimacy with Swift have healthy side effects, and they could realistically change the outcome of the upcoming election.

Swift’s endorsement of Harris has the potential to reach undecided voters. Most Americans have firm opinions of the two candidates, and experts estimate that legitimately undecided voters make up only about 3% of the U.S. electorate.

In this historically tight election, a fraction of that 3% could make all the difference.

Undecided voters do not form their political opinions from mainstream news outlets.

They are likely to have idiosyncratic opinions shaped by family, friends and social media bubbles.

While most Swifties are Democrats, 2023 survey data shows that 23% of her avid fans are independent and another 23% are Republicans.

In this context, comments from a parasocial friend like Swift could nudge those rare undecided voters in a blue direction.

Beyond undecided voters, Swift’s endorsement of Harris will light a fire under Democratic-leaning Swifties. The Swiftie fandom is incredibly well-organized, and it stretches far and wide across the social media ecosystem.

The Swifties for Kamala social media groups inspire potential voters by tapping into Swiftie culture and its friendship bracelets and other merchandise.

The group, which is unaffiliated with the Harris campaign, raised $142,000 on an August zoom call with Elizabeth Warren.

Soon after Swift’s endorsement, SwiftTok — the Swiftie TikTok community — was overrun with grateful fans praising the endorsement and literally crying tears of joy over the superstar’s statement.

It’s not difficult to see how that enthusiasm could translate into more donations and ground-game campaign work.

The vertical parasocial relationships fans have developed with Swift over the years can easily create productive horizontal relationships that mobilize voters and help the Democrats in November.

There are early signs that Swift’s endorsement is having an impact.

Within 24 hours of her announcement, more than 337,000 people visited the vote.gov link Swift shared with her Instagram followers.

At the MTV Video Music Awards, Swift again encouraged the audience to register to vote.

It’s easy to be cynical about celebrity political endorsements, and most of them fail to move the needle of public opinion.

It’s foolish, however, to extend that cynicism to Taylor Swift’s endorsement of Kamala Harris.

In doing so, one could miss one of the biggest political stories in this election cycle: the power of the Swiftie fandom.