Vice President Kamala Harris may not have clinched the Democratic presidential nomination yet, but an endorsement from this summer’s viral pop sensation could help her seal the deal with young voters.
Support from the left-wing political world was swift after President Joe Biden announced he was dropping out of the 2024 presidential race on Sunday, but excitement about a potential Harris ticket appeared to reach a fever pitch when English singer Charli XCX weighed in online that evening.
Vouching for Harris with a reference to her latest studio album, “Brat,” the “365” singer took to X, formerly Twitter, to tell her 3.6 million followers, “Kamala IS brat.”
The tweet had reached over 30 million people by Monday afternoon.
Though the shout-out may have seemed snide to the uninitiated, dubbing Harris a “brat” was as strong an endorsement as ever for those in the know.
Parts of the internet have been saturated with “Brat” references since the album came out in June, leading many to christen the season “Brat Summer.”
Political insiders who understood the reference used their platforms to stress how much sway Charli’s co-sign could have with young voters, who were feeling largely disaffected by the Biden vs. Donald Trump rematch.
When Gen-Z activist David Hogg weighed in, he posted, “The amount this single tweet may have just done for the youth vote is not insignificant.”
Commentator Yashar Ali also chimed in, telling his followers, “This is major.”
Team Harris eagerly embraced the endorsement on social media, changing the banner on her X account to mimic the minimal text on “Brat’s” slime green album cover.
The campaign’s account promptly followed the singer, who is known for her party-girl persona.
Though many were buzzing over Charli’s apparent endorsement, others were simply dumbfounded by the online discourse.
“I do not understand this even one little bit but I am receiving indications that it is good,” former Barack Obama staffer Patrick Dillon posted.
Asking the tough questions, The Bulwark’s Sarah Longwell simply wondered, “What is Brat?”
See some of the best memes and reactions below:
