A Gen Z pop star kicked off Harris’ campaign. Puerto Rican musicians may bring her to the finish line
By Elizabeth Wagmeister and Priscilla Alvarez, CNN
(CNN) — In September, Latin music superstar Nicky Jam appeared onstage with Donald Trump. Donning a red MAGA hat, the reggaeton singer told a Las Vegas rally that he was supporting the former president.
On Tuesday, he withdrew his endorsement – joining a chorus of famous Puerto Ricans who have condemned comments made by a comedian at Trump’s New York City rally earlier this week assailing the US island territory.
“Puerto Rico should be respected,” Nicky Jam told his 43 million Instagram followers.
While Jam didn’t endorse Harris in his post, Jennifer Lopez, Ricky Martin, Marc Anthony, reggaeton star Don Omar, “Despacito” singer Luis Fonsi and global superstar Bad Bunny are among the celebrities of Puerto Rican descent who have shown support for the vice president or her platform since Sunday. Lopez is also participating in a rally alongside Harris in Las Vegas on Thursday.
Harris campaign officials had always planned for star-studded events in the homestretch of the presidential election. But the influx of Latino artists denouncing Trump and showing up for Harris with voting already underway is the October surprise that the campaign didn’t see coming.
Together, those stars have a combined 390 million global followers on Instagram alone – more than the US population.
In a razor-thin race, celebrity support can move the needle, experts say, especially among a demographic with which polls have shown Trump closing the gap with Harris – Latino men – and especially at a time when both campaigns are vying for the Puerto Rican vote in battleground Pennsylvania, where there’s a sizable portion of Latino voters.
The Trump campaign has sought to distance itself from Hinchcliffe, with campaign spokesperson Danielle Alvarez saying in a statement after the rally, “This joke does not reflect the views of President Trump or the campaign.”
Unexpected support
The support from Bad Bunny – born Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio – came as a surprise to the Harris team, according to a campaign official.
Harris campaign officials had been in talks with Bad Bunny’s team and were cautiously optimistic he would back the vice president’s plans for Puerto Rico, according to a source familiar with discussions, but they didn’t expect him to weigh in Sunday, sharing on his social media a video of Harris’ plans for the island.
Bad Bunny has not generally weighed in on politics. A representative for the star told CNN that his repost of Harris’ video on Instagram was “not an endorsement” but that he is “supporting” the vice president because “Benito’s political focus has always been on Puerto Rico.”
For months, an endorsement from Bad Bunny had been at the top of the Harris campaign’s wish list, due to his influence on young male Latino voters, according to another source familiar with the campaign’s Hollywood outreach.
“They are cultural validators,” said one source close to the campaign, adding that actions from Latino artists garner coverage in Spanish media and help open discussions among the Latino community.
Another source described Latino celebrities weighing in for Harris as another way for the campaign to break through among Latinos at a time when polls suggest waning enthusiasm.
Harris pollster Matt Barreto, who focuses on Latino voters, argued that endorsements can help mobilize voters.
“Any sort of celebrity, influencer, famous person has the ability to attract attention and attract eyeballs,” Barreto said. “That, by itself, is a big positive. These are people who are recognized. To some extent, they are trusted.”
While celebrities alone get attention for name recognition, Barreto argued that voters need a reason to listen to them. That, he said, is one reason Sunday’s inflammatory comments about Puerto Rico has resulted in a snowball effect that has reached Latinos nationwide.
“This was all natural, and it helped amplify what the average person on the street was feeling,” he said.
“This is a very unique moment that will be talked about after the campaign and after the election for a long time. It is so much more powerful than the Latino community and, in any community, when you have celebrities and influencers and everyday people all reacting in real time similarly to such an offense,” he added.
A Hollywood political strategist who has been working with many A-listers this election cycle agrees that authenticity is key, especially as the reach of celebrities and is evolving.
“A few years ago, celebrities took the approach of more is more. That’s not it. You have to focus on the right people in the right places and align the people with the right issues and the right message,” the strategist said. “Followers need to believe it.”
Both campaigns utilize the power of celebrity
Ever since Harris’ campaign kicked off with Charli XCX’s lime green stamp of approval, Hollywood’s influence has been in the spotlight.
The British pop star’s “kamala IS brat” endorsement catapulted Harris into Gen Z territory at the very start of her campaign this summer, validating her candidacy among legions of young voters and turning the vice president into a pop culture meme icon.
Charli XCX’s endorsement came as a surprise to the Harris campaign, but it leaned in hard, flooding TikTok with lime green, coconut tree emojis and music from another Gen Z pop star, Chappell Roan, in an effort to reach younger voters.
Taylor Swift’s September endorsement of Harris, moments after the presidential debate, also came as a surprise to the vice president’s campaign. Both Harris and Trump swiftly pounced on the “Swiftie” fanbase, showcasing the pop superstar’s immense reach: The Harris campaign created Harris-Walz friendship bracelets inspired by the singer, while the Trump campaign released Eras Tour-inspired T-shirts.
As Election Day nears, the Harris campaign is bringing in more A-listers to mobilize people to vote, including a long-anticipated appearance by Beyoncé last week.
“We’ll use all the tools at our disposal,” a senior campaign official previously told CNN.
Trump later mocked his opponent for having a “dance party with Beyoncé,” suggesting that Harris was more focused on celebrities than on everyday Americans.
But the former president, too, is enlisting celebrity support during this critical time. On Wednesday night, hall of fame Packers quarterback Brett Favre returned to Green Bay, Wisconsin, to join Trump’s latest rally. TV psychologist Dr. Phil McGraw delivered remarks at Trump’s Madison Square Garden rally on Sunday, as did tech magnate Elon Musk.
As CNN previously reported, a recent Harvard study found that celebrity endorsements do play an influential role in promoting civic participation.
As voters get out to the polls, a wide range of stars have made recent endorsements. Some have been predictable like Oscar winner and longtime environmental activist Leonardo DiCaprio, who spoke about Harris’ commitment to climate change and said that Trump “continues to deny the facts.” Others have been more surprising, like Arnold Schwarzenegger, the former Republican governor of California who announced his support for Harris, calling Trump “unpatriotic.”
“I don’t really do endorsements. I’m not shy about sharing my views, but I hate politics and don’t trust most politicians,” Schwarzenegger wrote Wednesday on X. “I will always be an American before I am a Republican.”
Representatives for Schwarzenegger did not respond to CNN’s request for comment on whether his post came organically or was done in coordination with the Harris campaign.
A celebrity publicist told CNN that, like the past two elections, many of his left-leaning clients have been driven to take a stance against Trump, even more so than to show support for another candidate.
“A lot of it has been driven by Trump. When it comes down to it, do you all want Trump to be the president or not? That’s a very motivating thing,” the publicist said. “The Trump phenomenon is far more powerful as an organizer than most things.”
But on the other side of the aisle, Trump has more public celebrity supporters than ever before.
His longtime Hollywood fans include Jon Voight, Kelsey Grammer and Roseanne Barr, and country singers such as Jason Aldean and John Rich are also backing him. But this year, actors, including Dennis Quaid, Zachary Levi and Mel Gibson, have publicly endorsed Trump, as have athletes such as Mike Tyson and Kansas City Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker, and astronaut Buzz Aldrin.
Trump has been unique in his multifaceted celebrity approach, targeting hugely popular social media stars and podcasters, who arguably wield more influence than most Hollywood celebrities. His hour-and-a-half livestream with 24-year-old gamer Adin Ross garnered millions more eyeballs than any traditional news network could, as did his recent conversation with podcaster Joe Rogan, which currently has more than 40 million views.
“I wouldn’t over-index celebrities, but in a really close election in certain states and districts where elections are going to be won by less than 500 voters, you want to play all of your cards,” the Hollywood political strategist said.
The-CNN-Wire
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