WHETHER you actually sat down and watched the full presidential debate or not, I’m sure most people have at least seen some footage from it.
The most popular clip from the debate circulating right now is a snippet of Donald Trump saying, “In Springfield, they’re eating the dogs. The people that came in. They’re eating the cats. They’re eating — they’re eating the pets of the people that live there.” Trump got this idea from his running mate, JD Vance, who later said that he made it up, but it was too late. Donald Trump had already said it live in front of all of America.
Due to Trump’s statements going viral, Springfield, Ohio received bomb threats and white supremacist group threats, causing them to close down schools and government offices for safety.
Most of the viral footage from this debate has not led to such extremes, but there have been other viral clips. One of these viral moments shows the presidential debate where Vice President Harris says, “And as of today, there is not one member of the United States military who is in active duty in a combat zone, in any war zone around the world, the first time this century,” and it pans over to some US Army soldiers in a combat zone, proving her previous statement to be false. This footage was also posted to Donald Trump’s TikTok account.
Due to the circumstances of Biden dropping out and Harris stepping up, there likely isn’t enough time to hold a second debate before election day on November 5. CNN wanted to host another debate on October 23, Harris accepted, but Trump declined as of now saying that it’s too late, and that he would reconsider if he were in a better mood.
Both the Republican and Democratic candidates are using social media to campaign. Former President Trump often takes to X, formerly known as Twitter, to engage his audience. His recent posts consist of thanking states after he’s gone to rallies there and talking politics in an attempt to get more votes. Harris’ posts on X consist of campaign videos and she even took to X to accept CNN’s offer for a second debate saying, “I will gladly accept a second presidential debate on October 23. I hope @realDonaldTrump will join me.”
Kamala Harris and her team have been focusing on the younger demographics. They have been following trends on TikTok and even embraced “brat” theming from music artist Charlie XCX. Harris’s team has been focused on engaging with the newest age of voters to a degree of success. She frequently posts on @KamalaHQ on TikTok, using slang such as, “L” and “oof,” in her captions to attract engagement. These videos are gaining millions of likes within days of being posted.
On the other side, Trump has been posting TikToks roasting Kamala, and promoting himself on his @teamtrump TikTok account. One TikTok he posted was a video of himself with the caption, “AURA.” He made another video of President Joe Biden wearing a Trump 2024 hat with the caption “MAGA!” Donald Trump has also been using his TikTok to engage a younger audience with his videos getting millions of likes as well.
Another big factor is celebrity endorsements. Harris-Walz has gotten endorsements from Bill Nye, Billie Eilish, Olivia Rodrigo, The Obama’s, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Taylor Swift and more. The Trump-Vance campaign also has a ton of endorsements with names like Elon Musk, Hulk Hogan, Lil Wayne, Kanye, and more. Bryce Hall even jumped on stage at a Trump Rally to show his support for former President Trump.
While celebrity endorsements may not change the way people vote, it might encourage people to register to vote. A lot of celebrities may not have endorsed a specific candidate but have encouraged their fans to vote in general telling them that their vote matters. Taylor Swift’s endorsement caused over 337,000 people to visit the vote.org website. Whether that means they are voting for her endorsed candidate or not, it drives people to register to vote.
Lancers should visit the vote.utah.gov website to register to vote or update voting records or vote by mail.
