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Quick Take
Taylor Swift has previously endorsed political candidates, including Joe Biden in the 2020 election. Online posts, however, share an altered photo of Swift that purports to show she endorses former President Donald Trump’s false claim that he won in 2020 and that Democrats “cheated” in the election.
Full Story
Singer-songwriter Taylor Swift decided to use her celebrity influence in 2018 by endorsing Tennessee Democratic candidates Phil Bredesen for the U.S. Senate and Jim Cooper for the House.
In an Oct. 7, 2018, Instagram post, which received more than 2 million likes, Swift wrote, in part: “In the past I’ve been reluctant to publicly voice my political opinions, but due to several events in my life and in the world in the past two years, I feel very differently about that now. I always have and always will cast my vote based on which candidate will protect and fight for the human rights I believe we all deserve in this country. I believe in the fight for LGBTQ rights, and that any form of discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender is WRONG. I believe that the systemic racism we still see in this country towards people of color is terrifying, sickening and prevalent.”
Bredesen lost his race, and Cooper won.
The pop star waded into partisan politics again in 2020, when she endorsed the Democratic presidential ticket of Joe Biden and Kamala Harris. Biden’s campaign has made no secret of its hopes for Swift’s support again in the potential 2024 rematch against former President Donald Trump.
As of Feb. 2, Swift had not publicly announced her 2024 presidential preference.
Social media posts, however, are sharing a photo of Swift that purports to show her holding a sign that says, “TRUMP WON. DEMOCRATS CHEATED!”
But the photo has been altered to add the political signage.
The original photo of Swift, shown to the left, was taken at a Sept. 24 football game where Swift was cheering for her boyfriend, tight end Travis Kelce of the Kansas City Chiefs, in a skybox at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City. In that photo, Swift was not holding any sign.
Swift is increasingly a target of conspiracy theories and online misinformation, as we’ve written. That’s likely to continue, because Swift’s political influence is evident. A September Instagram post by the singer encouraging her fans to register to vote on the website Vote.org was followed by 35,000 registrations. Vote.org could not say how many registrations were directly due to Swift’s post, but the site reported more than a 1,200% jump in participation in the hour after the post, according to NPR.
Editor’s note: FactCheck.org is one of several organizations working with Facebook to debunk misinformation shared on social media. Our previous stories can be found here. Facebook has no control over our editorial content.
Sources
Ballotpedia. Tennessee’s 5th Congressional District election, 2018. Accessed 2 Feb 2024.
Epstein, Reid J., et al. “Inside Biden’s Anti-Trump Battle Plan (And Where Taylor Swift Fits In).” New York Times. 29 Jan 2024.
Getty Images. Taylor Swift reacts during a game between the Chicago Bears and the Kansas City Chiefs at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium on September 24, 2023 in Kansas City, Missouri. (Photo by David Eulitt/Getty Images). Accessed 2 Feb 2024.
Hensley, Sarah Beth. “Taylor Swift is the most influential voice in music. Could she be the same in politics?” ABC News. 2 Feb 2024.
Politico. Tennessee Senate Election Results 2018. Accessed 2 Feb 2024.
Sullivan, Becky. “A Taylor Swift Instagram post helped drive a surge in voter registration.” NPR. 22 Sep 2023.
Swift, Taylor. taylorswift Instagram post. 7 Oct 2018.
Van Sant, Shannon. “Taylor Swift Endorses Democratic Candidates in Tennessee.” NPR. 8 Oct 2018.
Via y Rada, Nicole and Marianna Sotomayor. “Taylor Swift Endorses Joe Biden for President.” NBC News. 7 Oct 2020.
Zinsner, Hadleigh. “Taylor Swift Is Being Screened in Israel, Contrary to Online Post.” FactCheck.org. 9 Nov 2023.