Taylor Swift is the name on everyone’s minds when it comes to the music world — and apparently the political world too, at least for fans who vote.
A poll conducted by Redfield & Wilton Strategies for Newsweek revealed just how much influence the “Tortured Poet” has on her fans’ support for presidential candidates, and as the presumptive two nominees continue to be neck and neck heading into the election, let’s just say a Swift endorsement would probably have the opposing party “Afraid of Little Old [Her]”.
Of the 1,500 voters sampled for the poll on May 1, 18% said they would be significantly more likely or just more likely to vote for a candidate in an election if Swift endorsed them. That’s compared to 15% who said they would be less likely if Swift did so — a small difference, but still a difference when it comes time to tally the votes in November.
But Swift’s swaying power would be more convincing if she decided to vote for a Republican candidate, according to the poll.
While 47% said she’d more likely vote for Democratic candidate President Joe Biden compared to 21% who said she’d vote for presumptive GOP nominee Donald Trump, the polling data shows 22% of those who voted for Biden in 2020 would be more likely switch and vote for the GOP candidate if Swift endorsed them. Newsweek says that’s a nine-point increase from a January poll in which only 13% of Biden 2020 voters said they’d vote Republican if Swift said so.
The impact is similar on the other side of the aisle, though not as strong. The polling data shows 16% of Trump 2020 voters said they’d vote for a Democrat endorsed by Swift, jumping from 13% who said the same in January.
Both the January and May polls had a margin of error of +/-2.53%, the data showed.
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It’s no secret that Swift has pull in areas other musicians don’t. Her Eras Tour is said to have boosted the local economies of many of the cities it’s played on top of driving live-event traffic, travel and even theaters when the concert film hit the big screen. In total, the U.S. Travel Association estimates that the economic impact of the Eras Tour is $10 billion, and it’s not even over.
But one area Swift generally stays out of is politics, though she’s become more vocal about encouraging voter registration and of her views in recent election years.
In 2018, she threw her support behind two Democratic congressional contenders in Tennessee and spoke about it in her 2020 documentary “Miss Americana,” in which she also voiced her opposition to Trump. Then in the 2020 presidential election, she backed the Biden-Harris ticket.
She’s been quiet though this year beyond posting on Super Tuesday to remind followers to “vote the people who most represent YOU into power.”
But if the survey published by Newsweek is any indication, an endorsement could swing things in the right direction for one of the top candidates.
