Noel Drake, 29, of Utah, said she used to find politics “very boring.”

In the 2020 election, she was completely disillusioned.

But Taylor Swift and her fans helped Drake change his mind.

“I developed a sense of community through interacting online with other fans, which has changed my attitude toward this year’s election ,” she said.

After singer Taylor Swift announced her endorsement of Democratic candidate Kamala Harris, Drake began following a fan-run advocacy group called “Swifties for Kamala . “

The group is not formally affiliated with Ms Harris’ campaign but is in regular contact with staff there.

Since interacting more with other Taylor Swift fans, Drake has decided to get more involved in local campaigns in her home state.

The BBC spoke to dozens of voters like Ms Drake, who said the singer’s posts and her passionate fans on social media had motivated them to vote or take part in election-related activities.

However, being a fan of Taylor Swift does not necessarily mean voting like the singer.

In the podcast Why Do You Hate Me?, the BBC looks at how pop meme-lover and co-founder of Swifties for Kamala, Irene Kim, went from superfan to political strategist.

Are there any tricks that Irene Kim and her teammates use that actually work?

Over the past month, a BBC reporter messaged a number of accounts that liked and commented on Swifties for Kamala posts.

Some of them were already Democrats, others were not so sure about their political views.

Take the case of Destiny, 27, from South Carolina.

She said that neither she nor her boyfriend are “too interested in politics,” but Swifties for Kamala’s posts reinforced why she voted Democratic in this year’s election.

“I really want a female president who stands for the same values ​​that I stand for. This is the first election where I’m voting for that reason,” Destiny said.

Even her boyfriend, who she describes as “pretty conservative,” was convinced to vote for Harris, a move Destiny said was partly due to her using some of Swifties for Kamala’s posts to influence him.

Part of the appeal of celebrities endorsing a political candidate — and political content created by their fans — is that unlike paid advertising, this type of user-generated content feels more authentic.

A study from the Harvard Kennedy School looking at the impact of celebrities on voter registration found that their “authenticity” may be a key factor when it comes to motivating people to vote.

The study’s author, Ashley Spillane, told the BBC that celebrities are among the “best placed members of society” to address causes of voter apathy, such as “lack of information, lack of trust and lack of motivation”.

“When celebrities get involved in politics, people feel they are doing it for genuine reasons and not for personal gain,” Ms. Spillane said.

Within 24 hours of Taylor Swift announcing her support for Harris on Instagram, nearly 340,000 people visited the election website vote.gov using the custom link the singer created.

While Ms Harris has the backing of Swift, Beyonce and a number of other celebrities, Mr Trump is not without his fans.

The endorsements of Kid Rock, Elon Musk, John Voight and YouTuber Nelk Boys could help the former president reach young men in the same way that Taylor Swift fans help Harris reach young female voters.

Mr Trump’s devoted online supporters function much like a fan community for an artist.

However, polls show such support could backfire.

A Quinnipiac University poll in late September 2024 found that Taylor Swift’s endorsement of Harris made 9% of respondents “more enthusiastic” about supporting the Democratic candidate while making 13% “less enthusiastic.”

The poll also looked at how billionaire Elon Musk’s endorsement affected respondents’ views of Mr Trump: 13% felt more enthusiastic, while 21% felt less enthusiastic.

Ultimately, we won’t know exactly how celebrities — and their fanbases — will impact the election until after November 2024.

In what appears to be a tight election, it is these online support groups that could drive voter turnout — especially in swing states where the winner could be decided by just a few thousand votes.

Kim, co-founder of Swifties for Kamala, said the group is specifically targeting voters in swing states.

Peggy Rowe of Arizona, one of the most closely watched states in the election, told the BBC that it was Ms Harris’s support for abortion rights that strengthened her motivation to vote for the vice-president.

“I am passionate about reproductive rights and social media has reinforced my views on this issue,” said Ms Rowe.

While using all the traditional political campaigning methods, Swifties for Kamala also took a new approach to Taylor Swift’s fan base.

Whenever they attend election events, they wear friendship bracelets with political slogans like “in my era vote.” This is reminiscent of the singer’s Eras tour, where fans exchanged Taylor Swift -themed friendship bracelets as a way to affirm their true fandom.

Kim said her team began canvassing directly a few weeks ago, calling and texting followers directly. They aim to have a total of 22 million direct contacts with voters before Election Day.

She estimated the group had raised more than $200,000 (over VND5 billion) as of mid-October 2024 for Ms. Harris’ campaign.

But there are also Taylor Swift fans who remain unmoved by her political views. The BBC has uncovered comments from some Republicans and Trump supporters who have chosen their preferred politician over the singer.

Bri, a Massachusetts resident, said she still chooses to vote Republican because “at the end of the day, people need to do what’s best for themselves.”

Bri told the BBC that because Taylor Swift has a large and passionate fan base, the singer should stay away from politics to be fair to all sides.

Taylor Swift is “entitled to her own opinion” but “she’s the only celebrity with such a huge following that it’s not appropriate to bring up politics in an election year,” according to Bri.

Although the former president did not receive Taylor Swift’s support, his supporters attempted to tap into the voting power of the singer’s fans by using AI to create a meme of Taylor Swift endorsing the former president.

In fact, it was Mr. Trump’s sharing of the meme on social media that prompted the pop star to support Ms. Harris.

Bri says she would “never dislike someone just because of their political views” — including fans who are members of Swifties for Kamala. But that doesn’t mean all the online chatter is friendly.

Irene Kim told the BBC that engaging in heated online debates is like a “rite of passage” for Taylor Swift fans.

But the advocacy group Swifties for Kamala now has guidelines to prevent this from happening, in part because they want to attract more voters who disagree with them.

“I think it’s always better to narrow the gap,” said Kim.