Democrats are ready for Taylor Swift to land in ‘Florida!!!’
The Florida Democratic Party is teaming up with Swifties for Kamala ahead of Swift's Miami concerts this weekend.
Kimberly Leonard
Pop superstar and Kamala Harris endorser Taylor Swift has three shows in Miami this weekend. And Florida Democrats are … ready for it.
The Florida Democratic Party is teaming up with the Swifties for Kamala voter outreach group to host listening parties, statewide canvasses and phone banking. They’ve teed up new merch and live streaming of Swift’s surprise song mash-ups at her shows.
Text banking will prod as many as 1.5 million Florida voters with messages like, “I Know Places You Can Vote” and “How To Get The Girl Elected.” Campaign volunteers will make beaded friendship bracelets that have become a signature accessory among Swift concert-goers, the bulk of whom are Gen Z and Millennial women.
They’re calling it all the “Eras Tour (GOTV Version).”
The Democratic National Committee is getting in on the action with a new Snapchat filter whose banner reads, “In My Voting Era” and “Be fearless for ____.” Users then get to fill in the blank space with words like “Equality,” “Reproductive Rights” or “Climate Action,” and their followers can click on a link to IWillVote.com. The DNC also snapped up Miami concert-area billboards, featuring Harris and messages like, “Welcome to your voting era! Swiftly go to the polls and vote for Democrats!”
There's no indication that Swift will use her Miami tour to make a political statement. Democrats remember all too well when a widely circulated false rumor that Beyoncé would make a surprise appearance at their convention in Chicago got them down bad.
But that isn’t going to stop Democrats from trying to use the opportunity to canvass outside the concert or from doing voter events with Democratic Senate candidate Debbie Mucarsel-Powell and Florida state House candidate Laura Kelley. And it hasn’t stopped Democrats from wishing Swift would weigh in again on candidates or issues.
“She holds immense power to get out the vote,” said Eden Giagnorio, spokesperson for the Florida Democratic Party. “We hope our organizing efforts will help voters connect the dots — but nothing compares to her advocacy around it.”
After all, Swift’s latest album features a song called, “Florida!!!” She has used her platform to encourage people to vote and endorsed other candidates earlier in her career. She recently posted about supporting “a women’s right to her own body” just as Florida voters are facing a question about abortion on the ballot in November. And Harris’ 60th birthday is on Sunday, the same day Swift’s Miami tour wraps. (Harris is scheduled to campaign in Michigan on Friday and Georgia Saturday.)
“Nothing that Taylor Swift does is accidental,” Florida Democratic Party Chair Nikki Fried said in Tallahassee this week. “She’s very purposeful in how she interacts with her fans, and so I think that her voice in this election is making a big difference.”
Republicans are shaking off Democrats’ festivities and gearing up for a Trump-themed caravan on Sunday.
Kevin Cooper, vice chair for Miami-Dade GOP, told POLITICO the party’s messaging around Swift’s concert would likely focus on how expensive concert tickets had become, calling it a “prime example of economic devastation under the Biden-Harris administration.” Cooper predicted that if Swift were to make a political statement, it could come with a reputational risk. “People are there to have a good time and listen to music,” he said, not to receive “partisan political messages.”
But both sides readily recognize that a Swift callout would get a ton of attention. On “Pod Save America” this week, Mucarsel-Powell was asked about being a Post Malone fan, and she acknowledged that his “Fortnight” collaboration with Swift was one of her favorite songs. One of the hosts, Tommy Vietor, lightheartedly suggested Mucarsel-Powell get them to do a show geared around the election.
“That would be the height for me,” she said. “If I get Taylor Swift in the concert and then Post Malone comes out and they’re like, ‘Ok everyone vote for Debbie Mucarsel-Powell she needs to be your next senator.’ That’s it, that’s all I need.”
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.