Pop superstar Taylor Swift took to Instagram Tuesday night to endorse Vice President Kamala Harris‘ presidential bid, potentially activating her army of Swifties to head to the polls in November.
“Like many of you, I watched the debate tonight,” she wrote in a lengthy post to her 283 million followers after the Harris vs. Donald Trump presidential debate. “If you haven’t already, now is a great time to do your research on the issues at hand and the stances these candidates take on the topics that matter to you the most. As a voter, I make sure to watch and read everything I can about their proposed policies and plans for this country.”
The highly influential artist continued, “Recently I was made aware that AI of ‘me’ falsely endorsing Donald Trump’s presidential run was posted to his site. It really conjured up my fears around AI, and the dangers of spreading misinformation. It brought me to the conclusion that I need to be very transparent about my actual plans for this election as a voter. The simplest way to combat misinformation is with the truth.”
Swift proceeded to proudly share that she will be “casting my vote for Kamala Harris and Tim Walz in the 2024 Presidential Election,” in the post that also featured a photo of the superstar holding her cat.
“I’m voting for @kamalaharris because she fights for the rights and causes I believe need a warrior to champion them,” the Grammy-winning singer wrote. “I think she is a steady-handed, gifted leader and I believe we can accomplish so much more in this country if we are led by calm and not chaos. I was so heartened and impressed by her selection of running mate @timwalz, who has been standing up for LGBTQ+ rights, IVF, and a woman’s right to her own body for decades.”
Swift concluded by urging her fans to register to vote: “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 in order 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.”
“With love and hope, Taylor Swift, Childless Cat Lady,” she signed off her message, seemingly referencing Trump’s running mate J. D. Vance’s past comments about women who don’t have children.
Swift was known for steadfastly staying away from politics in her early career — long before she pivoted to pop songs and was hurled into her current uncharted territory of mega fame. Two years into the Trump administration, Swift decided to let her politics be known. In an Instagram post, Swift endorsed the Democratic candidates Phil Bredesen and Jim Cooper in the 2018 U.S. midterm elections in her home state Tennessee. In 2020, she endorsed Joe Biden for president.
After Swift announced her endorsement, Rachel Maddow broke the news live on air to a delighted Walz. “I am incredibly grateful, first of all, to Taylor Swift, and I say that as a fellow cat owner,” he said in response. “That was eloquent, and it was clear. And that’s the type of courage that we need in America to stand up. We’ve seen it out of those Republicans who were at the DNC, we’ve seen it out of women who would like to have their own personal lives kept personal, but are forced to go out there because they nearly died because they can’t get abortion services in a pregnancy, and now you have somebody like Taylor Swift coming out and making that very clear. This is a big opportunity!”
Ahead of the Democratic National Convention last month, speculation had previously swirled around if Swift would publicly endorse Harris, with only President Barack Obama’s official nod to the Harris campaign receiving more attention. A petition from MoveOn.org even sought signatures to compel both Swift and pop superstar Beyoncé to endorse Harris.
Beyoncé, for her part, was quick to lend the Harris campaign its theme song. Two days into Harris’ campaign, the pop star ok’d the use of her 2016 track “Freedom,” from her hit album Lemonade. Not only is the song a selection for Harris to play at her events, it has a central role in her first campaign ad.
