Before the election, various celebrities informed their fans about who they plan to cast their ballots for. However, these celebrities fail to realize how harmful these endorsements are, oblivious to the detrimental consequences they pose on voters, fans and themselves.
Many celebrities believe they are encouraging their large audiences to make an educated choice and vote for the candidate whom they see fit. In reality, they are doing the opposite. Celebrity endorsements cause voters to ignore a candidate’s policies and instead base their opinions on who is supporting each candidate.
Additionally, celebrity involvement turns elections into competitions over who can create the better show. For example, during former wrestler Hulk Hogan’s speech at the Republican National Convention, he ripped his shirt off and referenced his time in the WWE multiple times, comparing candidate Donald Trump to himself.
Hogan relied on his celebrity status to make Trump seem like an enticing candidate. Instead of considering Trump’s ideology and ability as president, Hogan focused on his personal relationship with Trump. In fact, he did not make a single reference to any of Trump’s stances beyond vague references throughout his entire speech, according to a transcript by Rev.
Another example of celebrities using their fame to endorse candidates is rapper Megan Thee Stallion’s performance at a Kamala Harris rally in Atlanta. Instead of the rally being used to address strategies and policies Harris would implement as president, a significant portion acted as a Megan Thee Stallion concert.
Considering that Georgia is a swing state, the primary focus of the rally should have been on promoting policy. Performances and focus on entertainment can lead to politics being trivialized, lowering emphasis on pressing issues that must be considered by voters.
Having celebrities endorse presidential candidates can also sway the opinions of young voters. In fact, 19% of young voters admit that they take celebrity endorsements into consideration when voting, according to The Fulcrum.
In addition to influencing voters, the normalization of celebrity endorsements can harm celebrities themselves. The largest example of this is Chappell Roan, who came under fire when she refused to publicly endorse Kamala Harris.
Despite her reasoning that there are too many issues on both sides, she was attacked online for her perceived lack of action about many of the political issues she stands for, such as trans rights and Palestinian Liberation, according to Forbes.
Since so many celebrities endorse presidential candidates, fans have come to expect every celebrity to speak about their political preference. The only way to stop this hatred for those who choose not to speak on the topic is for their fellow celebrities to stop endorsing candidates in the first place.
The endorsement of candidates by celebrities ultimately leads to negative side effects for both easily-convinced voters and celebrities who choose not to support candidates. Neither fans nor voters should stand for this in the interest of protecting democracy.
