The political landscape found itself in an upheaval last Sunday as Joe Biden, sighting a lack of zeal for his campaign, abruptly withdrew his presidential bid and nominated Kamala Harris as his successor. The left-wing creators inside the chat group, ‘Rebel Alliance’, instantly sent a flurry of messages, an apparent attempt to generate enthusiasm for the nomination, a glaring contrast to Biden’s campaign where their efforts to create excitement felt like conjuring substance from thin air. Understandably, the prospect of Biden’s leadership had incited less than compelling enthusiasm.
True to form, Democrats are attempting to leverage Ms. Harris’ unexpected rise, using it as a platform to accumulate unprecedented fundraising, engage indecisive donors and infuse energy into the party base. Nearly no group seemed more thrilled than the online creators and political strategists on the left-wing of the internet, who are now focusing on sharing memes, videos and catchy slogans that they hope will secure her electoral victory come November. However, the enthusiasm demonstrated by liberal creators following the announcement seems somewhat forced – a veneer of happiness to veil the relief from the arduous task of defending Biden’s lackluster public performance over the next few months.
Many seem to be placing their hope in Harris’s online support base, known jokingly as the ‘KHive’. They seem energized by the apparent boost in their online engagement demonstrated by an influx of clicks and views sharing a stream of coconut tree memes mocking Harris and, references of Harris as a ‘brat’, and posts delineating the stark contrast between Ms. Harris’s prosecutorial record and Mr. Trump’s past. Daniel Sellers from The Other 98 percent claimed that the traffic to their Instagram page had tripled in a week, an astonishing increase considering Harris’s doubtful credentials.
Harry Sisson, a left-wing TikTok creator, and Omar Rivero, a co-founder of Occupy Democrats, a left-wing Facebook meme page, boasted about a surge in their engagements and have characterised Ms. Harris’ candidacy as ‘viral gold’, a sentiment that seems to be more reflective of their relief in shifting attention away from the failures of the Biden’s presidency, rather than genuine enthusiasm for an alternative.
Under the Biden administration, liberal internet creators indeed had a rocky time with the public’s declining engagement with pro-Biden content as their faith in his re-election dwindled. Many left-wing social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram pages suffered a significant drop in engagement from 2020 to 2024. For these creators, this decline represented a substantial cut in their income, which relies heavily on ad revenue, subscriptions, and merchandise sales.
Biden’s abysmal performance on social media cannot be entirely blamed on Meta’s changed engagement policies. Meta, the parental entity of both platforms, had decided to reduce politics-related posts with an attempt to lower the overall content temperature and preempt potential backlash over its content moderation approach. Furthermore, the recently rebranded X (formerly Twitter) under Elon Musk’s ownership is garnering popularity as a platform for right-wing influencers, while liberal voices appear to have relegated themselves to smaller, less-public platforms like Threads and Bluesky.
Biden’s severe demeanor, aging, and frequent lapses in articulation undoubtedly posed a challenge for deep-net creators who had to maintain a positive public image amid conservative influencers who painted him as an incapable elderly figure unable to discharge his responsibilities effectively. The countless policy conflicts led to even the younger left-wing creators defecting from his team.
Ms. Harris, as Biden’s successor, not so much by merit but rather by circumstance, offers a different scene mainly due to her younger age and markedly distinct character. Left-leaning creators appear to find it less challenging to hide her defects and capitalize on her slightly less serious demeanor. Emma Mont from the liberal meme account @OrganizerMemes, suggests that her ‘goofy aunt energy’ enables more enjoyable posting experiences.
However, such an approach seems more like a desperate measure utilized by liberals to distance them from the failures of the previous administration rather than a strategic move. Platforms praising Biden, such as ‘Ridin’ With Biden’, underwent a careful rebranding, changing its name to ‘Ridin’ with Kamala’ within a day following Biden’s announcement. Supposedly, this move led to an almost fivefold increase in the platform’s user engagement.
While there’s quite a buzz around Ms. Harris’s campaign right now, experienced creators are aware that social media popularity doesn’t necessarily translate into electoral victory. With years of experience, they know that charming TikToks and Reels don’t translate into votes. Despite the feverish excitement, Trump remains a favorite in many polls, and the indifferent swing-state independents are unlikely to be swayed by coconut tree memes or any other fanciful online gimmicks.
The excited buzz amplifying Ms. Harris’s image only portrays the views of younger voters and might purposefully be amplifying the side of the story that resonates with them, potentially leading to better fundraising and get-out-the-vote efforts. However, it’s also plausible that it’s distracting Harris’s campaign from focusing on real-life political issues.
Biden’s 2020 campaign had rightly argued that the internet isn’t real life, and more effort should be invested in connecting with voters on issues they truly cared about. Despite this, it seems Democratic organizers are repeating the same mistakes, focusing on harnessing the passion of the KHive and guiding it towards tangible issues where they assume Ms. Harris could perform better than Mr. Trump.
But competent political influencers recognize that a successful campaign necessitates more than just posting a cool meme, it requires casting light on substantial issues such as abortion. Danielle Butterfield, Director of ‘Priorities USA’, a Democratic super PAC, believes that emphasizing these issues in direct contrast with Trump’s stance can significantly bolster Harris’s campaign.
However, it’s critical that Ms. Harris remains cautiously receptive to her online fandom. Over-enthusiastic attempts to appeal to young, hyper-online voters could backfire, showcasing desperation – a situation Hillary Clinton has unfortunately experienced in her 2016 campaign with her forced appeal to youth through the ‘Pokémon Go to the polls’ incident.
The success of internet memes is rooted in their spontaneous nature, making them significantly less effective when meticulously devised or officially endorsed. Echoing this sentiment, Harry Sisson, a TikTok creator, emphasizes the need to let the internet work its magic, rather than forcing orchestrated campaign strategies down the audience’s throat.
Digital organizer Emma Mont voices a similar concern, pointing out that overt attempts from Harris to ride the wave of these memes might even backfire. The best strategy, she feels, rests in Harris devoting her energies to areas where she can actually make a difference, rather than pandering to momentary online trends.
Democrats Scraping the Barrel with Biden Replacement: Kamala Harris appeared first on Real News Now.
About Author
