Once mocked by Gen Z for her attempts to connect with youth culture by wearing Chuck Taylors, Kamala Harris’ campaign has quickly captured the attention of young voters on TikTok. Her campaign’s TikTok @kamalahq, has surged to over 2 million followers, with roughly 400,000 gained in one day. Her personal TikTok account, created 2 days ago, has swelled to over 3 million followers. It seems that Harris’ brand campaign and social media presence has taken the social media world by storm, with her videos flooded with comments such as “Project Coconut” and blue heart emojis.
By leaning into her memefication, Harris’ campaign has elevated her image from an non-serious vice president to “cool auntie” status. This shift is largely attributed to her associations with pop-singer Charli XCX’s album brat and burgeoning pop singer Chapell Roan’s summer hit “Femininomenon.” Her meteoric social media success has been linked to a modern-day form of guerilla marketing, energizing young voters and capturing world-wide attention.
Capturing the Cultural Zeitgeist of a #bratsummer
Harris’ social media success largely stems from its intersections with the cultural zeitgeist of Charli XCX’s album, brat. With its’ cool hyperpop-EDM infused sound and distinctive vomit-green album cover, brat has become a cultural phenomenon. More than just a record, brat has become an aesthetic and way of life–it’s having a bold and carefree attitude, embracing summer fun, party-girl energy, and the avant-garde. Charli XCX has described brat as “very honest,” “very blunt,” and a “little messy,” with the album catapulting the “brat summer” trend.
On July 21st, Charli XCX tweeted “kamala is BRAT,” inadvertently infusing Kamala Harris’ campaign with viral momentum. Harris’ team responded quickly, changing their X banner to a lime-green image reading “kamala hq” in true brat fashion.
By associating Harris with “brat” and the ensuing “brat summer,” Harris’ campaign now embodies the effortless “cool girl” aesthetic that catapulted brat in the cultural lexicon. Her team’s links to brat, has spurred a “brat x Kamala” crossover, with millions of TikToks featuring videos and images of Harris set to songs such as “365” and “Von dutch.”
Gen Z Appeal & Creating In-Groups
Beyond her “brat presidency” appeal, Harris’ social media team has successfully utilized Gen Z internet lingo, memes, and aesthetics, to create an attractive “in-group” atmosphere amongst young voters. The campaign’s use of fan-cams and edits (fan-made videos that feature celebrities) and lowercase captions characteristic of Gen Z language foster a sense of relatability amongst the generation.
This is best exemplified in a recent TikTok posted on @kamalahq titled “Pictures of Kamala with ∞ aura.” The “aura” trend functions as a measure of one’s coolness, with the ability to gain or lose “aura points.”
Such trends and language are often imperceptible to older generations, reinforcing Harris’ connection with Gen z and embodiment of presidential cool.
Coconut Tree Humor
Overall, Harris’ campaign has adopted a distinct tone, diverging from the political campaigns of President Biden and former President Trump. Embracing her “quirky auntie” persona and infectious laugh, Harris’ post centers around her personality and sense of humor, rather than traditional political messaging. Rather than simply engaging in “mud-slinging” against her opponents, Harris’ content largely centers around her memeability.
In a new famous speech in which Harris humorously remarks, “You think you just fell out of a coconut tree? You exist in the context of all in which you live.” This quirky turn of phrase and Harris’ laugh quickly became memeable content, with users using coconut tree emojis as a sign of support for the presidential candidate.
Rather than coming across as a somber or overly-serious political candidate, Kamala has become a sort of “goofy auntie” with a sense of humor and infectious laugh. Her campaign has incited a sense of optimism and joy into her public image, setting her apart from the previous Biden campaign.
Longevity
Despite her current success, it’s unclear whether or not Kamala Harris’ social media success will translate into increased voter turnout amongst young people–a demographic historically known for their low voter turnout.
As internet trends often shift rapidly, there is concern that Harris’ TikTok success and popularity among Gen Z may be a temporary occurrence. Is Harris’ team’s ability to capitalize on the success of brat summer a strategic masterpiece or a case of “overdoing” it? Only time will tell.
