Taylor Swift is one of the biggest celebrities on the planet.
She’s used to being an influential mover and shaker.
But Taylor Swift was blindsided by this big change Democrats want to make after Kamala lost.
Democrats sour on using celebrity endorsements
Pop star Taylor Swift endorsing Vice President Kamala Harris after the September debate was supposed to be one of the pivotal moments of the campaign.
Democrats and their media allies thought that Swift’s enormous popularity and dedicated fanbase would translate into newfound support for Kamala.
Kamala leaned into celebrity support during the final months of the campaign with musicians like Beyonce, Cardi B, and Bruce Springsteen appearing with her on the campaign trail.
The night before the election, her campaign spent $20 million on a series of concerts in swing states featuring Jon Bon Jovi, Lady Gaga, Christina Aguilera, and Katy Perry.
But Kamala surrounding herself with celebrities didn’t make a difference on election day when she lost the popular vote and all seven swing states.
Now, Democrats are starting to rethink the value of celebrity endorsements and campaigning with them after her crushing defeat.
Kamala’s constant campaigning with celebrities made her seem out of touch with the concerns of voters struggling with the high cost of living.
President-elect Donald Trump blasted Kamala for constantly appearing with stars.
“We don’t need a star because we have policy,” Trump said at a rally in Pittsburgh the night before the election.
Celebrities didn’t move the needle for Kamala with the youth vote this year.
Turnout dropped with voters aged 18-29 from 2020 and Trump improved his margin with young women by 7% from the last election.
Democrat strategist Hank Sheinkopf told The Guardian that Kamala’s problems were bigger than anyone could fix.
“The celebrities didn’t make a difference because no one could – it was a flawed campaign from the beginning because it was run by the political-industrial complex where there is no sanction for loss,” Sheinkopf said.
“Democrat numbers were down overall, so they failed to make the base feel invested, and celebrities don’t make people feel anything – all they do is add a shimmer to the event without giving people what they want – policy and direction,” Sheinkopf explained.
Celebrities created problems for Kamala’s campaign
Kamala’s big election eve concert series were a waste of time and money according to Syracuse University professor of music practice Andy Gershon.
“The celebrities were appearing at rallies full of people that were already going to vote for her,” Gershon stated. “Springsteen would have been better off canvassing factory floors or assembly lines in Michigan – the places he sings about in his songs – and Beyoncé would be better off in the nail or hair salons of Houston.”
Celebrities can be effective at endorsing products but their ability to persuade doesn’t extend to politics.
“Celebrity endorsements can get people to buy shoes and fragrances, and certainly influence hairstyles, but when it comes to getting people to change their mind about politics, and especially the president of the United States in an election where people have for eight or nine years taken sides, the celebrity effect just doesn’t apply,” Bleier Center for television and popular culture director Robert Thompson said.
“In fact, a celebrity endorsing a candidate is much more likely to get people to change their minds about a celebrity than it is to change their mind about a candidate,” Thompson added.
Kamala Harris’ campaign may have brought to an end the use of celebrity endorsements in politics.
