Is Taylor Swift helping Joe Biden to win the election? 1 in 5 US voters thinks so

What does Taylor Swift have to do with controversy over Biden’s campaign? What do Taylor Swift and Joe Biden’s presidential campaign have in common? The answer is not much, but don’t tell that to some Republicans. A new poll shows one in five voters believe that the pop superstar is part of a covert operation to help the incumbent president get re-elected. But what do we know about the theory? How many Americans believe it? Let’s take a closer look: Swift and Kelce First, it is important to note that Swift is currently a megastar in America. Swift, who has broken box office records with her “Eras Tour” and is currently having a romance with American football player Travis Kelce, is ubiquitous across US pop culture. Swift has attended multiple American football games in support of her new beau where NFL cameras have repeatedly panned to get her reactions – as they would any other huge celebrity. But Swift’s mere presence at the football games has angered some conservatives.

Some in the right-wing have accused Swift of “distracting” from their beloved game.

Meanwhile, Kelce, who is dating swift is a tight end for the Kansas City Chiefs and has been for more than a decade. The Chiefs are one of the most successful franchises in recent NFL history. They’ve won the Super Bowl for three out of the past five years – in 2024, 2023 and 2020. [caption id=“attachment_13717182” align=“alignnone” width=“640”] Taylor Swift kisses Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce after the NFL Super Bowl 58 football game against the San Francisco 49ers, Sunday, Feb. 11, 2024, in Las Vegas. The Chiefs won 25-22. (AP Photo/John Locher)[/caption] In 2021, they were the runner-up. Kelce, who has also been with the team for more than a decade, has also endorsed COVID-19 vaccines – leading to some right-wingers including NFL players  derogatorily refer to him as ‘Mr Pfizer.’ What is the theory? The conspiracy theory goes thus. Biden and his campaign somehow got Swift and Kelce together. Their romance is part of a ‘psy-op’ to influence voters to pull the lever for Biden in September. Not only that, Biden and his team somehow rigged the Super Bowl – the most high-profile sports event in the United States – in favour of Kelce’s team the Kansas City Chiefs.

But there’s even more.

Not only was Swift to perform at the halftime of the Super Bowl – which usually gets a massive audience numbering well over 100 million – she would then endorse Biden for reelection. Of course, Kelce and his team recently prevailed at the Super Bowl – as championship teams often do in finals. The idea was picked up by much of the right-wing after Fox News host Jesse Waters claimed that NATO wanted to use Swift as an asset. Many from the right-wing, including former presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy, then ran with that theory. Swift, meanwhile, did not perform at the halftime show. Nor has she endorsed Biden for president. Still, the Biden campaign seemed to have fun trolling the conspiracy theorists after the big game.

Just like we drew it up. pic.twitter.com/9NBvc5nVZE

— Joe Biden (@JoeBiden) February 12, 2024

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1 in 5 Americans believe conspiracy According to Ny1.com, a new poll from Monmouth shows that nearly 1 in 5 Americans (18 per cent) believe in the conspiracy theory. Nearly half of those surveyed (46 per cent) have heard about it. Eighty-three per cent of those that said ‘yes’ told pollsters they would be voting for Trump this November.

A massive majority (81 per cent) of those that subscribe to this theory are Trump supporters.

Meanwhile, 71 per cent of those who agree with this theory support the Republican party. [caption id=“attachment_13699432” align=“alignnone” width=“640”] Donald Trump has attempted to pressure Taylor Swift, saying an endorsement of Biden would be ‘disloyal.’ Reuters[/caption] Around three-fourths (73 per cent) believe the 2020 election was corrupt. “The supposed Taylor Swift PsyOp conspiracy has legs among a decent number of Trump supporters," Patrick Murray, director of the independent Monmouth University Polling Institute told the website. “Even many who hadn’t heard about it before we polled them accept the idea as credible.”

“Welcome to the 2024 election,” Murray added.

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So what is happening? Republicans are likely nervous that Swift, with her sway over millions and millions of young people, will likely endorse Biden again. Voter registrations in 2022 witnessed a massive 1,226 per cent boost in the hour after Swift asked her fans to sign up. The New York Times reported that the Biden campaign, aware of their current shortcomings with the youth vote, is seeking her endorsement. Rolling Stone reported that Trump and his allies have discussed the possibility and have even considered declaring war on the pop superstar. According to Morning Joe, the former president, however, continues to insist that he is a bigger star than Swift. ‘Touch grass’ Some Republican strategists think the focus on Swift could hurt the party. “People just want to like Taylor Swift. They want to be able to watch football and listen to her music and not consider the political implications,” said Matt Gorman, vice president at Targeted Victory, a Republican political consulting firm. “I beg people who care about this to go outside and touch grass. Most everyday people don’t have the time or energy to care.” Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley told a recent audience that she didn’t understand “what the obsession is.” “Taylor Swift is allowed to have a boyfriend. Taylor Swift is a good artist. I’ve taken my daughter to Taylor Swift concerts before. To have a conspiracy theory of all of this is bizarre,” she said.

Experts say conspiracy theories might seem harmless but can prove otherwise.

“The good news is people don’t believe in conspiracy theories more than they have in the past. The bad news is that they believe them more than we paid attention to or cared about,” said Joseph Uscinski, a political science professor at the University of Miami who studies conspiracy theories. “If the right Pied Piper comes along then folks can be mobilised, sometimes with very devastating consequences,” Uscinski said. Mellissa Best, a Trump supporter from Florence, South Carolina, wasn’t aware of the theories about Swift. [caption id=“attachment_13656382” align=“alignnone” width=“640”] Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley told a recent audience that she didn’t understand “what the obsession is.” AP[/caption] But Best said she wouldn’t be surprised if powerful people tried to leverage Swift’s influence to improve Biden’s popularity among young people. Best said that if she had young children, she wouldn’t want them attending Swift’s concerts.

“I believe these leftists will do anything to stay in power,” she said. “It wouldn’t surprise me.”

Trump himself has attempted to pile pressure on Swift, claiming that she would be ‘disloyal’ if she endorsed Biden. “I signed and was responsible for the Music Modernization Act for Taylor Swift and all other Musical Artists. Joe Biden didn’t do anything for Taylor, and never will,” Trump wrote in a post on his social media platform Truth Social on Sunday. “There’s no way she could endorse Crooked Joe Biden, the worst and most corrupt President in the History of our Country, and be disloyal to the man who made her so much money.” The White House, meanwhile, struck a far more sober note on Wednesday when asked about the conspiracy. ABC quoted White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said the White House is “always going to be concerned” about such theories and their potential impact. “We have a concern about our democracy and where it’s going and protecting our democracy,” Jean-Pierre, citing the events of 6 January, said. “The Taylor Swift conspiracy, that’s for others to speak to. I’m not going to speak to that from here,” Jean-Pierre said. But others weren’t so reticent. “There are whole hosts of issues that we could be working on together. The economy, affordable housing, public safety, national security, the challenges at the border,” House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries of New York said at a press conference on Thursday. “Extreme MAGA Republicans have chosen to spend the week focused on [the impeachment of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro] Mayorkas and Taylor Swift. That’s their agenda. It’s performative politics.” With inputs from agencies