In 2007, the Pew Research Center conducted a poll that revealed shocking results: 30% of respondents admitted that Oprah Winfrey’s endorsement of a presidential candidate would impact their vote. After the election, it was estimated that through her widespread television influence, Oprah was responsible for over one million votes for President Obama. 

Looking back on these results over a decade later, they don’t seem as surprising; with the social media revolution, celebrity influence on politics has increased significantly. In decades past, voters may have been politically influenced by a few leading public figures. Now, during an election cycle, Americans are influenced by thousands of posts across social media platforms. From Instagram, Twitter, Snapchat, Facebook, and more, Americans are carrying around political campaigns in the palm of their hands. Unlike television or newspaper, which can easily be clicked off or folded closed, this new form of political activism can scarcely be avoided. While celebrity advocacy can be productive in raising awareness about political issues, celebrity endorsements of politicians have an unjustified influence on American voters. Even worse, the spirit of the democratic process is undermined when celebrities themselves are elected into office.

When celebrities are advocating for a political cause instead of a specific political candidate, they usually have less capacity for causing harm. If seriously committed to a cause, celebrities have the ability to provide large populations with useful information, rather than frivolously telling their followers who to vote for. Take Leonardo DiCaprio’s activism for climate change prevention, for example. While many of DiCaprio’s peers scatter a few half-hearted political posts in their feeds otherwise full of selfies, promotions, and advertisements, DiCaprio utilizes his social media for purely political purposes. This allows him to provide statistics like “air pollution from fossil fuels caused almost 1 in 5 deaths in 2018,” updates on climate change research, like a “only 3% of Earth’s ecosystems are intact, scientists say” and calls to action like “4 things you can do to #savetheokavango.” Through his carefully curated social media presence, DiCaprio provides his collective 100 million followers with important, useful information on an issue to which he is devoted. If celebrities follow this example by providing their followers with objective information rather than merely persuading them to vote for a particular candidate, they can have a responsible influence on American politics. 

The issue of celebrity influence on politics begins with celebrity endorsements of political candidates. Usually celebrities post endorsements close to election day, providing little information, if any, about the candidate. In the 2020 presidential election, celebrity endorsements on social media were as prevalent as ever. Harry Styles retweeted a Biden campaign video on October 27, 2020 assuring his 34 million followers that even though he isn’t an American citizen, if he could vote he “would vote with kindness.” On November 2, 2020, Beyonce posted a boomerang of herself in a Biden Harris mask telling her 218 million followers to “#VOTE.” On election day, Billie Eilish took to Instagram urging her 100 million followers to “GET OUT THERE AND VOTE” because the country has “got to change sh*t up,” presumably meaning the Trump administration. While the majority of American celebrities advocate for Democrats, these endorsements occurred on the other side of the aisle as well. Lil Wayne tweeted a picture of himself with former President Trump at the White House on October 29, 2020, assuring his 35 million followers that Trump “will and can get it done.” Similarly, on August 27, 2020 Herschel Walker tweeted a picture of him in front of the White House with the simple caption “TRUMP PENCE 2020.” 

The common thread throughout these social media endorsements is a strong call to action backed by no information or reasoning. These celebrities do not want their followers to make responsible political decisions as informed voters, they want their followers to blindly follow their ideology. And it's working. In a study conducted in October 2020, 12% of voters reported that an entertainer or athlete influenced their thinking regarding the presidential election. While this is a small percentage, it is certainly enough to swing an election. In the 2020 election, for example, President Biden won the popular vote by less than 5%. What is even more concerning is that these endorsements are disportionately influencing young voters. In a 2014 study, 70% of college-aged participants reported that they believe people their age trust celebrities more than politicians on political issues. Considering these voters have the least experience voting and spend the most time on social media, it is no wonder that they are heavily impacted by celebrity endorsements. This is especially concerning since the millennial and post-millennial generations make up 69% of the eligible voters in the United States. 

However, the most damaging impact that celebrities have on American politics, is not when they are endorsing candidates, but when they are the candidates. This has happened more than once in American history, on both the state and federal levels. In 2003, The Terminator star Arnold Schwarzenegger was elected Governor of California in a runoff election following Governor Gray Davis’ recall. Despite opposing a qualified, traditional republican candidate, he swept the republican vote with 67%. Despite being a Republican opposing the current Democratic Lieutenant Governor, Schwarzenegger won 20% of the Democratic vote. Despite his lack of political experience, he took 20% of the independent vote. To suggest that Schwarzenegger wasn’t elected because of his celebrity status, heightened just months prior to election with the release of The Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines which earned $433 million in the box office, would be unreasonable. The state of California elected an inexperienced celebrity as governor, and that’s exactly what they got. While Schwarzenegger cut hundreds of millions of dollars from the state’s annual budget, both the state debt and the price of in-state university tuition tripled during his time in office. 

The most recent example of this at the federal level is the election of former President Trump. From his real estate business to his hit TV show “The Apprentice,” Donald Trump was a well-known billionaire prior to running for president in 2016. While the presidential nominee from both parties obtains celebrity status during election season, fame is what gave Trump his lead in the primaries. With no Republican incumbent, the Republican primary race was wide open, starting with 17 candidates. A large determinant in political popularity is media coverage; because of his fame, Trump received $2 billion in free media coverage, more than double any other candidate. As a result, Trump continued to pull ahead in the primaries while experienced candidates such as former Governor of Texas Rick Perry and former Governor of Wisconsin Scott Walker dropped out having received no delegates. 16 of the 17 Republican primary candidates were more traditionally qualified than Trump and still he won the Republican nomination, eventually becoming the 45th President of the United States. Again, to suggest that this could have happened to any unknown business man with no political experience would be unreasonable. Whether or not one agrees with the political beliefs of these candidates is irrelevant; when politicians get elected because of their fame, the American people diminish the democratic process into a petty popularity contest. 

The influence of celebrities on American politics is threatening the spirit of democracy on which the country was founded. When breaking from the British monarchy, the Founding Fathers envisioned a process in which government officials were elected based on merit instead of gaining power simply due to nepotism. The American people elected their first president based on his role in the Revolutionary War, not his role in the latest summer blockbuster. While celebrity influence on politics is not as severe as nepotism, it is similar in the sense that leaders are being elected based on social status, rather than merit. Of course the most qualified person will not always be elected in a democratic process, but electing people based on fame ensures that this isn’t the case. 

The solution to this problem is not to impede celebrities’ freedom of speech or prevent them from running for office. The solution rests within the control of the American people. We must stop allowing celebrities to use us like pawns in their political games. To achieve this, there should be more education on political socialization in American public schools. Most Americans are already required to take a civics class in high school, but this curriculum should be updated to include the influence of celebrities on politics. Schools should assure students that their opinion and vote is more important than what their favorite musician or football player thinks. While celebrities are telling American voters what to think politically, American schools should teach future American voters how to think politically.