Taylor Swift endorses Kamala Harris for president after debate ends

WASHINGTON – Taylor Swift, one of the biggest stars in music, endorsed Kamala Harris as a presidential candidate shortly after the debate ended Tuesday night.

“I believe she is a calm, gifted leader and we can accomplish so much more in this country when we are led by calm, not chaos,” Swift wrote in an Instagram post that included a link to a voter registration website.

Swift has a loyal following among young women, a key demographic in the November election, and her recent tour has brought in more than $1 billion in ticket sales. Within half an hour, the post received more than 2.3 million likes.

Singer Taylor Swift endorses Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris in an Instagram post following the presidential debate between former U.S. President Donald Trump and Harris; this screenshot is from a social media post dated September 10, 2024.

She included a picture of herself with her cat, Benjamin Button, and signed it with the message “Childless Cat Lady.” The remark refers to three-year-old comments by JD Vance, Donald Trump's running mate, that women without children do not have an equal stake in the country's future.

A senior Harris campaign official said the endorsement was not coordinated with the campaign. Tim Walz, Harris' running mate, apparently learned of the endorsement in the middle of a live interview on MSNBC. As Rachel Maddow read the text, Walz smiled and patted his chest.

“It was eloquent. And it was clear,” Walz said. “And that's the kind of courage we need in America to stand up.”

Swift wrote that her support was motivated in part by Trump's decision to post AI-generated images that suggested she supported him. One showed Swift dressed as Uncle Sam and the caption read, “Taylor wants YOU to VOTE FOR DONALD TRUMP.”

Trump's posts “made me realize that as a voter, I need to be very transparent about my actual plans for this election,” Swift wrote. She added, “I did my research and made my choice.”

The Trump campaign team rejected Swift's support.

“This is further proof that the Democratic Party has unfortunately become a party of the wealthy elite,” said spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt.

“There are a lot of Swifties for Trump out there in America,” she said, including herself.

Swift's support was hardly surprising. In 2020, she endorsed President Joe Biden and cheered on Harris in her debate against then-Vice President Mike Pence. She has also openly criticized Trump, saying he has stoked “the fires of white supremacy and racism.”

Swift is a popular figure nationwide, but especially among Democrats. An October 2023 Fox News poll found that 55% of all voters, including 68% of Democrats, have a favorable opinion of Swift. Republicans were split, with 43% having a favorable opinion and 45% having an unfavorable opinion.

AP VoteCast suggests that a partisan divide regarding Swift was already evident in 2018. That year, Swift made her first political endorsement, supporting Democrat Phil Bredesen of Tennessee for Senate over Republican Marsha Blackburn.

VoteCast found that 55 percent of Democrats and just 19 percent of Republicans in Tennessee had a favorable opinion of Swift this year. Blackburn won by a comfortable margin in this deep-red state.

Swift is the leading nominee at Wednesday's MTV Video Music Awards. While it's unclear whether Swift will attend the show in New York, she could use her acceptance speeches to explain her support for Harris.