Kamala is Brat

In the weeks following President Biden's official withdrawal from the 2024 presidential campaign, support for Vice President Harris as the next Democratic candidate has increased among Democratic officials and voters alike. Biden endorsed Harris in the latter half of his letter of departure, and most Democrat officials followed suit, including President Barack Obama and United States Representative Nancy Pelosi.

However, many of such endorsements assumed a sense of obligation in their immediacy ranging from hours to days following Biden's withdrawal. Contrarily, Harris has earned the support and excitement of voters, especially those of Generation Z.

The Brat Phenomenon

In the days following Biden's endorsement of Harris, pop singer sensation Charli XCX posted "kamala IS brat" on X—the post has since gained significant media attention and praise. The term "brat," originating from the singer's hit album of the same name, encapsulates an aesthetic hugely popular across platforms such as TikTok and Instagram.

Additionally, sound clips of a past speech made by Harris have gone viral on TikTok, often remixed with other popular tracks. Harris has since embraced the attention, changing certain aspects of her social media accounts to match the brat album branding and officially joining TikTok.

Record-Breaking Registrations

Harris and her team's efforts to take advantage of the trends have proven successful. According to Vote.org, in the 48 hours following Harris's emergence as a presidential candidate, there were a record-breaking 38,500 new voter registrations, 85% of which were under the age of 35. As of Friday, July 26th, the figure has surged well past 100,000.

Why Young Voters Respond

Why are young voters so responsive to Harris, given that her policy differs little from Biden's? The answer is her youth. Joe Biden was known for being elderly, and questions of his mental and physical competence were concerns of most Democrat voters. His age, at times, distracted supporters from his policy and made "backing Biden" a frustrating pill to swallow.

Kamala Harris, in comparison, is quite the opposite. Her engagement in social media and trends starkly and refreshingly contrasts Biden's elderly conduct. In short, Harris is young and cool, while Biden was anything but. With less negative attention attributed to the candidate's fitness, more time can be allotted to discussing policy, substance, and real change for our country.

Looking Forward

As we advance with this election, expect more of Harris contributing to trends on your FYP. You'll see Harris' proposed plans and policies go deeper than just her age and relevance. And, of course, as we near the election, register to vote and turn up at the polls in November.