Taylor Swift recently urged her fans to take action at the forthcoming US elections, driving record-breaking numbers to the Vote.org website.
On Tuesday (September 19), the ‘Midnights’ pop star shared a message on her Instagram Stories feed to mark National Voter Registration Day. “Are you registered to vote yet?” she began the post.
“I’ve been so lucky to see so many of you at my US shows recently. I’ve heard you raise your voices, and I know how powerful they are. Make sure you’re ready to use them in our elections this year!”
Swift added that it would take “less than 2 minutes” to register to vote, sharing a link to Vote.org.
Yesterday (September 20) Vote.org’s communication director, Nick Morrow, revealed on X (fka Twitter) that “our site was averaging 13,000 users every 30 minutes” following Swift’s plea.
“13! Let’s just say her reputation for being a mastermind is very well-earned! #NVRD,” he continued.
Check out the post below.
Fun fact: after @taylorswift13 posted on Instagram today directing her followers to register to vote on @votedotorg, our site was averaging 13,000 users every 30 minutes. 13! Let’s just say her reputation for being a mastermind is very well-earned! #NVRD https://t.co/L80M5KRakq
— Nick Morrow (@NRMorrow) September 20, 2023
Per a press release, Vote.org saw its highest traffic on National Voter Registration Day since 2020 after Swift’s post. The organisation, which is the largest 501(c)(3) nonprofit, nonpartisan voting registration and get-out-the-vote (GOTV) technology platform in America, clocked up 35,252 new registrations overall.
This year’s numbers demonstrate a 22.5 per cent jump in voter registrations compared to last year’s National Voter Registration Day. Vote.org also saw a 72 per cent increase in 18-year-olds registering compared to NVRD 2019, and a 115 per cent increase in 18-year-olds registering compared to 2022.
Andrea Hailey, CEO of Vote.org, explained: “Vote.org saw record-breaking traffic to our site this week as we celebrated National Voter Registration Day, a highly encouraging sign of voter enthusiasm especially among newly eligible voters.
“Time and time again young people are showing up and demonstrating they care about their rights and access to the ballot box.”
Hailey continued: “During the day on Tuesday we saw a 1226 per cent jump in participation the hour after Taylor Swift posted. Our site was averaging 13,000 users every 30 minutes – a number that Taylor Swift would be proud of.
“Vote.org is seizing on this momentum and jump-starting our plans to register eight million voters before Election Day 2024. We’ve already launched our registration program with our youth efforts across campuses, influencer engagement, radio, digital, social media and direct voter contacts.”
She concluded: “The 2024 election is already here, and now, it’s time to turn this enthusiasm into votes.”
Swift broke years of political silence in 2018 to back two Democrat candidates in the US midterm elections and ask her fans to register and vote. It came after she faced criticism for not speaking out against Donald Trump ahead of the 2016 US election.
In 2020, the singer shared a video message that saw her endorse Joe Biden and Kamala Harris on the eve of the presidential election.
Swift had previously allowed her music to be used in a political advert for the first time. Her 2020 song ‘Only The Young’ soundtracked a commercial from Eric Swalwell, which urged people to vote for the Democratic Party.
In other news, Swift has revealed the titles of the five ‘From The Vault’ tracks that will appear on ‘1989 (Taylor’s Version)’.
Swift bagged a history-making nine awards at last week’s 2023 MTV VMAs, tying for the most wins in one night. She also has the second-most overall wins, coming in second to Beyoncé (who has a total of 26 VMAs as a solo artist).