Charli xcx, Taylor Swift, George Clooney and Beyoncé all voiced their approval for the Democratic candidate. But do these endorsements do more for the stars than for the politician?
B ack in July, Charli xcx posted a three-word tweet that some commentators thought might help swing the US election. Arriving the day after Kamala Harris announced her bid for the presidency, Charli’s tweet said simply: “Kamala IS Brat.”
It was a reference to Charli’s latest album, Brat, which had dominated the pop cultural landscape all summer and was loaded with synth-pop bangers, drug references and tales from a life spent getting messy on dancefloors. It wasn’t perhaps the most obvious comparison to make with the then 59-year-old US vice-president, but the overall meaning was clear: Kamala was the presidential candidate with the most energy and authenticity – and had the approval of the pop star of the moment.
The Harris campaign leaned into the endorsement, changing the backdrop of its official X page to the same garish green colour used on the record’s sleeve. It helped mark Harris out as a different, more dynamic candidate than her faltering predecessor: Joe Biden may have been many things but he was most certainly not Brat. Yet as the dust settles on an extremely depressing election result, it appears clear that not only did Charli xcx’s tweet have no meaningful impact on the election result, nor did the endorsement of any celebrity.