Voter registration spikes in Minnesota following Taylor Swift’s endorsement

Thousands of Minnesotans have entered their voting era, registering in droves after the presidential debate and Taylor Swift’s Instagram post calling on her fans to turn out in the election.

In her post, which included a photo of Swift with her cat from her TIME Magazine Person of the Year cover in 2023, she endorsed the Democratic ticket of Vice President Kamala Harris and Gov. Tim Walz. Her statement also included nonpartisan encouragement to register to vote and on her story, Swift plugged a link to Vote.org.

“The choice is yours to make. I also want to say, especially to first time voters: Remember that in order to vote, you have to be registered! I also find it’s much easier to vote early,” Swift said.

The post garnered more than 11 million likes.

And when Taylor speaks, Swifties listen. Between Sept. 9 and Sept. 12, the Minnesota Secretary of State’s office recorded more than 20,000 new registrations to vote. On Sept. 12 alone, two days after the presidential debate, 13,000 people completed registration applications. In the week prior to the debate and Swift’s endorsement, the office recorded an average of 1,300 daily registrations.

Getting registered is the first step in having your voice heard but it can sometimes be overlooked by new voters, Secretary of State Steve Simon said in an statement.

“It’s great to see so many people using their influence to spread the word about the importance of taking part in our shared democracy,” Simon said.

Nationally, Swift’s endorsement of Harris and the call for her fans to vote appeared to have an impact. The vote.org link shared to her Instagram story was clicked more than 400,000 times, the General Services Administration and the Election Assistance Commission told The New York Times.

Though some may balk at celebrity endorsements, Swift fans have been waiting for her to speak up. Sanjali Roy, a senior at the University of Minnesota, said she believes celebrities have a responsibility to use their voice.

“She is the most influential non-politician in the U.S. and possibly the world .... I feel like she should say something,” Roy said. “If she can set the precedent for going out and voting and being a good citizen, I think that would really make a difference in the voting turnout.”

Some Swift fans have taken it a step further, mobilizing as a group called “Swifties for Kamala.” In their first organizing call in August, fans raised over $100,000 in campaign donations. On Thursday, they collaborated in a digital campaign event alongside the likes of Oprah and Harris herself.

In a video posted Tuesday, Billie Ellish, who recently became the most most-streamed monthly artist on Spotify, encouraged fans to “vote like your life depends on it,” along with the link to IWillVote.com.

For Gina Fast, after watching Swift’s 2020 documentary “Miss Americana,” she said she knew without a doubt Swift would make a statement, she just wasn’t sure when.

“There’s massive energy going on right now in terms of the call to vote, so I do think that well-placed celebrity endorsements are helpful,” Fast said.

Swift’s Instagram post created an opportunity to talk about issues like the importance of participating in elections and forming opinions with her 14-year-old daughter and fellow fan.

“Taylor allows you to open up conversations at a younger age, because they can resonate with her, and that gives us as parents the ability to translate that into meaningful conversations,” Fast said.