Pop megastar Taylor Swift drew more than 9 million “likes” to her Instagram post backing Vice President Kamala Harris for president from celebrities that included Jennifer Aniston, US basketball star Caitlin Clark and Selena Gomez. Soon after Harris, a Democrat, finished debating her Republican rival Donald Trump on Tuesday night, Swift, 34, told her 283 million followers that Harris and running mate Tim Walz would get her vote in the Nov. 5 election.

Her post encouraged first-time voters to be sure to register for the election, and a US General Services Administration spokesperson reported on Wednesday receiving 337,826 visitors at vote.gov from a custom URL that Taylor Swift had shared.

“I’m voting for @kamalaharris because she fights for the rights and causes I believe need a warrior to champion them,” Swift posted.

She called Harris a “steady-handed, gifted leader” who could lead the country with calm rather than chaos.

Swift was pictured with her cat in her post, which she signed as “Childless Cat Lady” in a dig at Trump’s running mate JD Vance, who in a 2021 interview called some Democrats “a bunch of childless cat ladies.” He has since said it was merely a sarcastic remark.

Supermodel Karlie Kloss, who is married to Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner’s brother, liked Swift’s post.

“Parks and Recreation” and “The White Lotus” actor Aubrey Plaza echoed Swift’s endorsement in her own Instagram post on Wednesday, where she held a cat alongside the caption “HARRIS WALZ” with an American flag emoji.

Trump supporter Elon Musk, who is chief executive of Tesla and owns social media platform X, wrote on his platform, “Fine Taylor … you win … I will give you a child and guard your cats with my life.”

His message was branded “disgusting,” “misogynistic” and “creepy.”

“I’ve done my research, and I’ve made my choice,” Swift wrote to her followers on Instagram. “Your research is all yours to do, and the choice is yours to make. I also want to say, especially to first time voters: Remember that in order to vote, you have to be registered!”

Swift wrote that she was impressed by Walz, the Minnesota governor, and described him as someone “who has been standing up for LGBTQ+ rights, IVF, and a woman’s right to her own body for decades.”

Walz, who was on MSNBC when the endorsement was announced, said he was “incredibly grateful” and urged the singer’s large fan base of “Swifties” to “Get things going.”

Shortly after Swift’s endorsement, the Harris-Walz campaign announced pre-orders for its latest campaign wear: Swift fan inspired friendship bracelets.

TRUMP DISMISSES ENDORSEMENT

Donald Trump on Wednesday dismissed Swift’s endorsement of Harris, saying he “was not a Taylor fan”.

“It was just a question of time,” Trump told Fox News in an interview. “She’s a very liberal person. She seems to always endorse a Democrat. And she’ll probably pay a price for it … in the marketplace.”

In August, Trump posted a fake social media image of Swift asking people to vote for him in the November election.

Swift referred to that in her Tuesday post, saying Trump had “really conjured up my fears around AI, and the dangers of spreading misinformation.”

She added: “It brought me to the conclusion that I need to be very transparent about my actual plans for this election as a voter.”

Opinion polls show the race essentially tied between the two candidates.

Harris, who supports abortion rights, has criticized Trump for appointing three of the Supreme Court justices who in 2022 helped overturn the 1973 Roe v Wade ruling ensuring a constitutional right to abortion.

Trump has defended the court’s abortion ruling but said a federal abortion ban is unnecessary and that the issue should be resolved at the state level.

Swift backed President Joe Biden in 2020. Many Hollywood actors, producers and filmmakers have said they view Harris, a former U.S. senator from California, as their hometown candidate.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Former U.S. President Barack Obama gestures as he speaks during Day 2 of the Democratic National Convention (DNC) in Chicago, Illinois, U.S., August 20, 2024.
| Photo Credit: Reuters

Warning of a difficult fight ahead, former U.S. President Barack Obama and his wife Michelle Obama on Tuesday (August 20, 2024) called on the nation to embrace Kamala Harris in urgent messages to the Democratic National Convention that were at times both hopeful and combative.

“America, hope is making a comeback,” the former first lady declared. She then tore into Republican Donald Trump, a sharp shift from the 2016 convention speech in which she told her party, “When they go low, we go high.”

“His limited and narrow view of the world made him feel threatened by the existence of two hardworking, highly educated, successful people who also happened to be Black,” Ms. Obama said of Mr. Trump.

Mr. Obama, the former president, called Mr. Trump “a 78-year-old billionaire who hasn’t stopped whining about his problems since he rode down his golden escalator nine years ago.”

“It’s been a constant stream of gripes and grievances that’s actually gotten worse now that he’s afraid of losing to Kamala,” he charged.

Harris’s coalition

The fiery messages from two of the Democratic Party’s biggest stars underscored the urgency of the moment as Ms. Harris works to stitch together a broad coalition in her bid to defeat Mr. Trump this fall. She is drawing on stars like the Obamas and other celebrities, officials from the far left to the middle, and even some Republicans to boost her campaign.

And while the theme of the night was “a bold vision for America’s future,” the disparate factions of Ms. Harris’ evolving coalition demonstrated, above all, that they are connected by a desire to prevent a second Trump presidency.

Just ahead of the Obamas’ remarks, Ms. Harris addressed an estimated 15,000 people in battleground Wisconsin in the arena where Republicans held their convention last month. She declared that she was running “a people-powered campaign.”

“Together we will chart a new way forward,” the vice president said in remarks that were partially broadcast to the DNC. “A future for freedom, opportunity, of optimism and faith.”

Schumer, Sanders praise Harris

Back in Chicago, Senators Chuck Schumer, the Senate Democratic leader, and Bernie Sanders, the Vermont independent beloved by progressives, both praised Ms. Harris. And in an appearance perhaps intended to needle Mr. Trump, his former press secretary Stephanie Grisham — now a harsh critic of her former boss — also took the convention stage.

Mr. Trump “has no empathy, no morals and no fidelity to the truth,” Ms. Grisham said. “I love my country more than my party. Kamala Harris tells the truth. She respects the American people. And she has my vote.”

Still, it was not all serious on the second night of the four-day convention.

A symbolic roll call in which delegates from each State pledged their support for the Democratic nominee turned into a party atmosphere. A DJ played a mix of state-specific songs — and Atlanta native Lil Jon ran out during Georgia’s turn to his hit song with DJ Snake, “Turn Down for What,” to the delight of the thousands inside the cavernous United Center.

Second gentleman Doug Emhoff, who would become the nation’s first gentleman if his wife wins the presidency, shared personal details about his relationship with Ms. Harris — their cooking habits, their first date and her laugh, which is often mocked by Republican critics.

“You know that laugh. I love that laugh!” Mr. Emhoff said as the crowd cheered. Later, he added, “Her empathy is her strength.”

Mr. Trump, meanwhile, was out on the campaign trail as part of his weeklong swing-State tour during the Democratic convention. He went to Howell, Michigan, on Tuesday and stood aside sheriff’s deputies as he labelled Harris the “ringleader” of a “Marxist attack on law enforcement” across the country.

“Kamala Harris will deliver crime, chaos, destruction and death,” Mr. Trump said.

U.S. President Joe Biden, right, and Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump, left, during a presidential debate hosted by CNN, Thursday, June 27, 2024, in Atlanta.
| Photo Credit: AP

U.S. President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump opened their first 2024 Presidential debate without shaking hands and went right to mixing it up on policy Thursday night. Some key moments from their 90-minute faceoff.

Economic fireworks

Their first exchange delved into the economy. Mr. Biden spoke softly, in a hoarse voice, as he talked up the economic gains on his watch, saying he rescued it from “free fall” and “chaos” when he took over the presidency from Mr. Trump in 2021. He cleared his throat several times.

Mr. Trump listened with a bemused expression but did not try to interrupt, though his microphone was muted while Biden spoke.

When it was his turn to speak, Mr. Trump bragged about the state of the economy during his term, saying “everything was rocking good.” He blamed Biden for rising prices that have frustrated Americans.

“Inflation is killing our country,” Mr. Trump said. “It’s absolutely killing us.”

Candidates tangle over who’s extreme on abortion

Mr. Biden blamed Mr. Trump for eroding abortion rights after the Republican’s three appointees to the U.S. Supreme Court voted to reverse Roe v. Wade, which had recognised a nationwide constitutional right to abortion. The reversal has energised many voters who support abortion rights and it helped power Democratic victories in the 2022 midterms and special elections.

Also read | The Hindu editorial on the 2024 U.S. Presidential election as a Biden-Trump rematch

“It’s been a terrible thing what you’ve done,” Mr. Biden said, turning to his rival. He pledged to restore the law under Roe if given a second term but didn’t say how he’d accomplish that. He said the idea of turning abortion laws back to states “is like saying we’re going to turn civil rights back to the states.”

Mr. Trump said his presidency returned the issue of abortion to the people through state laws. He said he supports abortion ban exceptions for rape, incest and the life of the mother, and he repeated his claim that Mr. Biden supports abortion up to and after birth.

“We think the Democrats are the radicals, not the Republicans,” Mr. Trump said.

Trump pushes January 6 falsehoods

Mr. Trump lied about his role in the January 6, 2021, attack by his supporters on the U.S. Capitol, and tried to deflect by pivoting to other issues. Pressed on his role, he said he encouraged people to act “peacefully and patriotically,” then changed the subject to launch an attack on former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif.

He said Mr. Biden ought to “be ashamed” for the way the January 6 defendants have been handled.

Mr. Trump, who has floated the idea of pardons for the 6 rioters, suggested his supporters who stormed the Capitol were actually peaceful and are now being politically persecuted.

In fact, the rioters engaged in hand-to-hand combat with police and used makeshift weapons to attack officers. More than 1,400 people have been charged with federal offenses stemming from the riot, and more than 1,000 of them have pleaded guilty or been convicted at trial.

“The only person who’s on this stage that’s a convicted felon is the man I’m looking at right now” Mr. Biden said of his rival.