Taylor Swift has undoubtedly become one of the most famous names in popular culture, and as it is said,”with great power comes great responsibility.”
Her fans, lovingly known as Swifties, have sprinted en masse to rally behind the icon as, over the last several years, she has endorsed, supported, and advocated for political figures, cultural calls-to-action, and economic stimulus.
From endorsing Vice President Kamala Harris — which according to Hollywood Reporter, drove almost 338,000 people to register to vote — to single-handedly lifting a post-pandemic economy last summer, she is clearly a force to be reckoned with.
Taylor Swift arrives at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium prior to a game between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Cincinnati Bengals on September 15, 2024 in Kansas City, Missouri. Her mother, Andrea Swift, accompanied her to the game.
Jamie Squire/Getty Images
Let’s take a deep dive into her political, social, and international influence.
Political Support and Influence
In October 2018, Swift took to her Instagram to publicly endorse Democratic candidates in Tennessee, ultimately establishing her left-leaning political stance moving forward.
She shared a grayscale photo with the following post, “As much as I have in the past and would like to continue voting for women in office, I cannot support Marsha Blackburn. Her voting record in Congress appalls and terrifies me. She voted against equal pay for women.”
In that same month, 1.5 million of Swift’s fans liked the snapped pic of her sporting red, white, and blue toenails while sharing, “Something I wish I knew about when I was 18 and voting for the first time: EARLY VOTING. It makes it so quick and easy to go and cast your vote before November 6.”
Just this comment alone mobilized more than 65,000 Americans ages 18 to 29 to register, according to CNBC.
Cut to 2020, the “Shake It Off” singer made her first formal presidential endorsement, supporting Joe Biden and Kamala Harris. According to an interview with V Magazine, she confessed, “The change we need most is to elect a president who recognizes that people of color deserve to feel safe and represented, that women deserve the right to choose what happens to their bodies, and that the LGBTQIA+ community deserves to be acknowledged and included.”
In September 2024, Travis Kelce’s sweetheart posted a touching picture of herself with her cat, Olivia Benson, and wrote, “I will be casting my vote for Kamala Harris and Tim Walz in the 2024 Presidential Election. I’m voting for @kamalaharris because she fights for the rights and causes, I believe [we] 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.”
Swift continued to share, “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.”
Social and Cultural Influence: The “Taylor Effect”
The impact that the Tortured Poets Department producer has on her fans and followers has continued to be so profound that it is now being referred to as the “Taylor Effect.”
According to a 2023 Forbes article, upon dating Kansas City Chiefs tight end Kelce, Swifties turned their attention to the NFL, leading to a 400 percent spike in his jersey sales. When news spread that Swift would attend a game, ticket prices surged 40 percent from $83 to $119.
But her influence didn’t stop there. As the above article stated, NFL viewership also hit a new peak, with a 53 percent increase in female viewers aged 12 to 17, a 34 percent increase in female viewers above 35, and a 24 percent increase in female viewers aged 18 to 24, compared to the previous years average of Sunday Night Football.
Alongside the viewership, Kelce gained 600,000 new social media followers, and his podcast, New Heights with Jason and Travis Kelce reached the top of Apple and Spotify’s most-played lists. This success culminated in the podcast’s $100 million sale.
International Influence
The 14-time Grammy winner’s influence doesn’t stop at just America, either. Her international business influence, or “swiftonomics,” has seen unprecedented levels of positive economic impact due her iconic Eras Tour ticket sales.
To date, per AP News, Swifties heading to in-person concerts has garnered over $1 billion in gross ticket sales — marking the first tour in history to hit the billion-dollar milestone.
The AP article also states that alongside in person, the concert film, Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour, has grossed $267 million worldwide, reportedly reviving several sectors of the global economy that were struggling post-pandemic.
