Kamala Harris has Scarlett Johansson. Donald Trump has Scarlett Johnson, president of Ozaukee County Moms for Liberty.
Two women with very similar names paint a picture of different surrogate pools for Trump and Harris. Johnson, a woman who supports Trump, is a Wisconsin conservative education activist and unsuccessful school board candidateAnd Johansson is an internationally known movie star who is on Time magazine’s 100 Most Influential People list.
Harris has acted as a magnet for Hollywood’s elite, attracting the likes of dozens of major celebrities, which bring with them a large following — which in turn could bring more enthusiasm and even contributions, helping to juice up the Democratic base on Election Day, which is more than a month away. does.
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Johansson, for example, Harris attended a charity event This week, the lesser-known Johnson was among surrogates introduced as Trump launched multiple cities. bus tour In the key state of Wisconsin.
Johnson was joined by several people generally considered backbenchers in Congress. On the fifth and final day of the tour, some high-profile political names will join the campaign, including Republican National Committee co-chair Lara Trump and former presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy.
On the other hand, it boasts supporters like Harris’s campaign Oprah WinfreyHe held a video town hall for Harris, who spoke at the Democratic National Convention in August and last week in Michigan, featuring a wide array of A-list celebrities, including Jennifer Lopez, Chris Rock, Meryl Streep and Julia Roberts. .
Trump is supported by several well-known celebrities, including rapper Ye, formerly known as Kanye West, Elon Musk, former professional wrestler Hulk Hogan and rapper Lil Wayne, but overall the star power behind Trump is one of the biggest celebrities himself. in the world – pales in comparison to those supporting Harris’ bid for the White House.
Celebrity endorsements are a long-standing tradition in presidential politics that Democrats generally win. But in the process, Democrats may open themselves up to an easy line of attack for Republicans: Democrats serve Hollywood, not ordinary Americans.
“Comrade Kamala, a patriot, is creating a RADICAL LEFT DREAM GROUP,” Trump wrote in a fundraising email last week after Harris’ interview with Winfrey. “He has HOLLYWOOD HACKS like Oprah Winfrey and Jamie Lee Curtis making MILLIONS for his campaign.”
Both have endorsed Harris, but it is not known how much money he has raised for his campaign.
Harris’ campaign has tried to downplay the role celebrities play in his campaign. he tells reporters “We are not going to be a celebrity-driven campaign” during the Democratic convention.
In 2016, Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign was also heavy on celebrity support, with pop superstar Katy Perry making a memorable speech at the Democratic convention. Clinton, of course, lost to Trump, and the Harris campaign’s comments are a sign that she is wary of being perceived as out of touch with the average voter.
Neither the Trump nor Harris campaigns responded to requests for comment for this article.
This election cycle, celebrity supporters have gravitated toward Harris, who gained support weeks after President Joe Biden announced he would not seek re-election. Many political celebrities grew weary of Biden’s campaign, particularly after his disastrous debate performance in June, but quickly aligned themselves with Harris once he became the party’s presumptive nominee.
One of Harris’ biggest endorsements came from pop superstar Taylor Swift.
After her first debate with Trump, Swift endorsed Harris, calling him a “steady, talented leader.” He then did so Trump mistakenly reposted an AI-generated image on her social media site, Truth Social, made it look like Swift was endorsing her campaign.
“I ACCEPT,” Trump posted above the AI-generated photo.
Swift criticized the fake post, saying that it was is part of the reason he is supporting Harris’ campaign.
Trump has since distanced himself from the original fake post after asking Swift if she was worried would sue. He claimed that someone else published the post which has not been deleted from the social media platform.
Even as Harris’ celebrity approval rating has been lowered, Trump has tried to use people with celebrity status to appeal to specific voting blocs. He used rappers for the trial Black votersand last month he used a rally in Pennsylvania to announce his support for Puerto Rican reggaeton star Anuel AA, who is encouraging Puerto Ricans to “vote for Trump.”
A Education at Harvard University Released last month, it focused on the ability of celebrities to promote voting and encourage voter turnout. According to the research, celebrity involvement is beneficial in these areas.
“Although some polls suggest that people are not influenced by celebrity voices when it comes to politics, more rigorous evidence suggests that these voices are incredibly powerful,” according to the study.
He added that celebrities are “uniquely positioned to empower everyday Americans to use their voices and exercise their civil rights.”
Trump has largely missed that celebrity jab, but he’s still found a way to ride on the coattails of high-profile Harris endorsements by occasionally criticizing his own coverage.
Shortly after Swift endorsed Harris, Trump said he would “probably pay a price” for the endorsement, and five days later he launched his most open and direct attack on Swift on Truth Social.
“I hate Taylor Swift” placed.