A ‘new’ video of Taylor Swift encouraging fans to vote on Election Day is going viral as Kamala Harris and Donald Trump go head-to-head for the United States presidency.
But the clip, which began making the rounds on X (formerly Twitter) and TikTok on Tuesday, was originally posted by the billionaire pop star, 34, during the November 2018 midterm elections.
In it, Swift spoke directly to ‘young voters’ and encouraged her followers to show that they voted by posting a photo with the hashtag #JustVoted.
‘It’s not enough to just want to vote. You have to go and make change by voting,’ she says in the six-year-old clip.
Many Swifties — and even the trusted news publication Newsweek — were left fooled as they believed it was the latest statement from Swift regarding the 2024 election.
‘Miss Swift your endorsement may have just saved democracy. I thank you very much,’ one unknowing fan tweeted out.
Several even went ahead and posted selfies showing off their ‘Just Voted’ stickers in the hopes of getting Swift’s attention.
The video — which Swift originally shared to her Instagram Story in 2018 — was reposted by the TikTok account @taylor_swift_videos on Tuesday, amassing over 400,000 views in just nine hours.
It gained further traction when it was posted to X by the account Call To Activism, which boasts over 1million followers and is a vocal Harris supporter.
In September, Swift publicly endorsed Democratic nominee Harris and her VP pick Tim Walz in a lengthy Instagram statement that’s racked up more than 11.4million likes.
On Monday, Swift issued a ‘friendly but extremely important reminder’ to her devout fanbase to head to the polls on Tuesday, November 5.
Swift was noticeably absent from Harris’ star-studded closing election rally in Pennsylvania this week as she, instead, attended boyfriend Travis Kelce’s NFL game in Missouri.
She watched the Kansas City Chiefs face off against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Arrowhead Stadium, with Swift seated in a VIP booth with Patrick Mahomes’ wife Brittany, who is a known Trump supporter.
Brittany went public with her Trump support in September, liking multiple posts endorsing Trump and JD Vance at this week’s election.
When Swift went public with her backing of the Democrats in September, she mocked Vance’s remarks about the United States being run by ‘childless cat ladies’ and praised Harris as a ‘gifted leader.’
She also slammed the former president Trump for ‘falsely’ claiming her support with a slew of AI images back in August.
Swift made her Harris endorsement via Instagram just hours after Harris and Trump’s fiery presidential debate.
‘Like many of you, I watched the debate tonight. If you haven’t already, now is a great time to do your research on the issues at hand and the stances these candidates take on the topics that matter to you the most. As a voter, I make sure to watch and read everything I can about their proposed policies and plans for this country,’ Swift began.
‘Recently I was made aware that AI of ‘me’ falsely endorsing Donald Trump’s presidential run was posted to his site. It really conjured up my fears around AI, and the dangers of spreading misinformation. It brought me to the conclusion that I need to be very transparent about my actual plans for this election as a voter. The simplest way to combat misinformation is with the truth,’ she added.
She noted that ‘I’m voting for @kamalaharris because she fights for the rights and causes I believe need a warrior to champion them. I think she is a steady-handed, gifted leader and I believe we can accomplish so much more in this country if we are led by calm and not chaos. I was so heartened and impressed by her selection of running mate @timwalz, who has been standing up for LGBTQ+ rights, IVF, and a woman’s right to her own body for decades.’
‘I’ve done my research, and I’ve made my choice. Your research is all yours to do, and the choice is yours to make. I also want to say, especially to first time voters: Remember that in order to vote, you have to be registered! I also find it’s much easier to vote early. I’ll link where to register and find early voting dates and info in my story,’ she wrote.
Swift concluded her Instagram post with: ‘With love and hope, Taylor Swift Childless Cat Lady.’
Swift included a photo of herself holding her cat Benjamin Button, which was originally snapped for TIME magazine in 2023.
The Trump campaign quickly shrugged off the endorsement, claiming it’s further proof Swift is part of the ‘Democratic elite.’
Trump then took to Truth Social to declare his ‘HATE’ for the pop sensation.
Swift has publicly endorsed before. She backed current U.S. President Joe Biden in the 2020 election.
And in an interview in 2019 with The Guardian, Swift said she supported Hilary Clinton over Trump in the 2016 election and accused Trump of treating the presidency like ‘an autocracy.’
