How fandom is shaping the 2024 presidential election
On Thursday, at the Democratic National Convention, a rumor took hold. Someone tweeted that Beyoncé would perform, and an anticipatory buzz commenced. TMZ confirmed it. Viewers waited with bated breath for the arrival of Queen Bey. And then, nothing. No Beyoncé. On Friday morning, in the cold light of day, the jokes began. “They’re saying Beyoncé might come to the Lunch and Learn seminar at work today,” someone wrote on X.
In a 2011 interview with Collider, actor Christopher Heyerdahl said, “Fandom can keep something alive, and fandom can take it down.” He was talking about fans’ passion for his work in the Twilight movies because — 13 years ago, as the internet stretched its young legs — fandom was a powerful vehicle driving the success of YA fantasy novels and franchises.
In 2024, fandom is helping to decide the outcomes of elections. And fandom may finally put a woman in the White House.
Once the purview of nerds and wonks, fandom has been mainstreamed in monoculture. In its annual trends report from this year, YouTube found that 80 percent of respondents between the ages of 14 and 44 consumed content about something they’re a fan of at least weekly on YouTube. Research conducted by Amazon’s advertising arm in 2023 found that 70 percent of respondents consider their fandom and fan community part of their everyday lives, and almost 90 percent share their passions and fandoms with other people in their lives.
Fandom has also become intertwined with identity. For example, 47 percent of Gen Z respondents (ages 14-24) in the YouTube survey said they belong to a fandom that no one they know personally is a part of.
Over the past decade, as politics has become more personal, fandom and the fight for freedom of expression have merged. Pop stars are increasingly outspoken about political issues and have become powerful mouthpieces for the causes that matter most to them and their fans. It’s no coincidence that a large faction of pop star fandom comprises women and LGBTQ people, two groups with bodily autonomy at risk in a second Trump presidency.
Olivia Rodrigo, for example, has been particularly outspoken about abortion. When the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022, she dedicated the song “Fuck You” to the court of record. This year, Rodrigo partnered with the National Network of Abortion Funds to provide free contraception, lubricant, and Plan B to attendees of her Guts World Tour until her team swiftly reversed course after widespread media attention. Concert handouts read “Funding abortion? It’s a good idea. Right?” in reference to Rodrigo’s song “bad idea, right?”
Pop star endorsements of Harris range from overt to implicit. Megan Thee Stallion, for example, performed at a Harris rally in Atlanta, wearing a cropped pantsuit. She introduced her song “Body” by addressing the audience: “I know my ladies in the crowd love they body, and if you want to keep loving your body, you know who to vote for.” And, after fans of Charli XCX transformed memes about her brat album into a cultural commentary about Harris’s social capital, the Brit tweeted, “Kamala IS brat” in a show of support.
Perhaps rumors of Beyoncé’s appearance at Thursday night’s DNC caught on quickly because she has only offered a tacit endorsement of Harris, allowing the campaign to use her song “Freedom” while threatening legal action against the Trump campaign for its recent use of the same track.
The Harris campaign has cleverly leveraged this perceived alignment with the pop star constituency. It sponsored a “This is Charli XCX” playlist on Spotify. References to Chappell Roan, a pop artist with a recent meteoric rise, are woven into the literal fabric of the campaign: it raised more than $ 1 million through sales of a hat that resembled the pop star’s merch. The singer’s “Good Luck, Babe” played during the DNC roll call for Roan’s home state of Missouri.
Winking at fans in these ways is not just smart; it’s critical. Fandoms are excellent grassroots organizers. They unite across religion, race, sexuality, and geography to help their idol win awards and gain media coverage through methodical, consistent action. K-pop fans organizing against Trump became one of the biggest stories from the 2020 presidential election. In 2024, fandoms have learned from past attempts to effect change and are faster and fiercer than ever.
That may be why no pop star endorsement is more anticipated than that of Taylor Swift. When Harris replaced President Biden as the de facto Democratic nominee in July, Swifties created a flurry of organizing activity under the moniker Swifties4Kamala. In a widely shared screenshot, one overseas Swiftie earnestly asked where they could cast a vote for Harris online. It was a delightful example of the modern fan’s instinct to effect change through purely digital channels.
In a statement to Mashable, Laura Brounstein, Spokesperson for Harris for President, said, “Trusted and authentic messengers can be some of the most effective in today’s media environment, so when the Swifties talk to their friends and family about why they’re voting for VP Harris, they’ll be listened to!” The campaign expressed gratitude for other fandoms, too. “There is nothing like organic, heartfelt support!” said Brounstein. “We are so grateful to have such diverse, passionate, and creative supporters using their platforms to talk about the stakes of this election.”
Though she has been silent thus far, it would make sense for Swift to endorse Harris. She endorsed Biden and Harris in the 2020 presidential election. Before that, in 2018, she made her first-ever political statement in an Instagram post rebuking the views of Republican Sen. Marsha Blackburn, who was seeking election in Tennessee. “[Blackburn’s] voting record in Congress appalls and terrifies me,” Swift wrote in a caption. “She voted against equal pay for women. She voted against the reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act, which attempts to protect women from domestic violence, stalking, and date rape. She believes businesses have a right to refuse service to gay couples. She also believes they should not have the right to marry. These are not MY Tennessee values.”
In this election, those values remain most closely aligned with the Harris/Walz campaign, which would seek to codify reproductive rights for women and protect the LGBTQ community from gender and sexuality-based hate and violence. And Swift — who is unmarried, does not have children, and is a loud and proud owner of three cats — could take issue with past comments from Republican vice presidential nominee J.D. Vance that called Democratic leaders “a bunch of childless cat ladies who are miserable at their own lives and the choices that they’ve made and so they want to make the rest of the country miserable, too.” Swift’s fans have already pounced on the prospect of her reclaiming the label in a show of support for Harris. As one X user put it, “hell hath no fury like a certain childless cat lady who has yet to endorse a presidential candidate.”
Over the past week, two developments have strengthened the argument for a Swift endorsement. On Aug. 20, the singer concluded the European leg of her billion-dollar Eras Tour and won’t tour again until October. That means she could shift her focus to an endorsement in the interim. And on Aug. 18, Trump published AI-generated photos of women in “Swifties for Trump” shirts on his Truth Social account. Some suggested that his accompanying caption, “I accept,” implied that the artist had endorsed his campaign. (The Trump campaign did not respond to Mashable’s request for comment.) Swift, who is notoriously litigious and fiercely protective of her likeness, could see the move as a final straw.
Of course, Trump himself is a lesson in the power of fandom. Despite having no political experience, a shady business background, and a damning, decades-long record of racism and misogyny, he radicalized a riotous base to become president. Now, even with a few felonies under his belt, his campaign is still alive and kicking. But can Trump’s cult of personality outlast the pulsating tides of pop fandom? As one pop star puts it, “Good luck, babe!”