Minutes after Tuesday night’s high stakes presidential debate, pop star Taylor Swift shared a lengthy Instagram post saying she will be voting for Vice President Kamala Harris and her running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz.
She signed the post “Taylor Swift, Childless Cat Lady,” in reference to resurfaced JD Vance’s statements that have become a rallying cry among some women voters, and shared a photo of her with one of her well-known cats.
Swift’s political leanings have been the subject of speculation for weeks, heightened after former President Donald Trump re-shared a fake AI image to his Truth Social account suggesting he had her support.
Swift previously gave her support to President Joe Biden and Harris during the 2020 presidential race.
“I will be casting my vote for Kamala Harris and Tim Walz in the 2024 Presidential Election. I’m voting for @kamalaharris because she fights for the rights and causes I believe need a warrior to champion them. I think she is a steady-handed, gifted leader and I believe we can accomplish so much more in this country if we are led by calm and not chaos. I was so heartened and impressed by her selection of running mate @timwalz, who has been standing up for LGBTQ+ rights, IVF, and a woman’s right to her own body for decades,” Swift wrote.
Swift, 34, also told her 283 million Instagram followers that she had “I’ve done my research, and I’ve made my choice. Your research is all yours to do, and the choice is yours to make,” before calling on them to make sure to register to vote.
In late August, Trump posted “I accept!” on his Truth Social account, along with a carousel of images that appeared to be of Swift, and at least some of which appeared to be AI-generated.
Swift seemed to confirm this in her post.
“Recently I was made aware that AI of ‘me’ falsely endorsing Donald Trump’s presidential run was posted to his site. It really conjured up my fears around AI, and the dangers of spreading misinformation. It brought me to the conclusion that I need to be very transparent about my actual plans for this election as a voter. The simplest way to combat misinformation is with the truth,” she wrote.
The Swift endorsement came as a surprise, two Harris campaign officials told NBC News.
One official said this added to what they view as a “decisive victory” tonight and speaks to Harris’ ability to attract support.