Do celebrity endorsements have an influence on Voter Opinion following the US Election?

By Sigmund Ainembabazi

The much heated US elections ended this week with Republican candidate, Donald Trump being declared the winner with a landslide victory over the Democrats candidate, Kamala Harris. Apparently, it was anticipated a couple of months ago that Kamala would have a clean swoop of the election because of the ‘elegance and style’ of her campaign trail.

She had some of the world’s most popular and famous celebrities cheering and endorsing her. These included legendary rapper, Eminem, singers Megan Thee Stallion, Cardi B, Beyonce, Katy Perry, Usher, basketball superstar, LeBron James among others.

Literally, the 60 year old had all the creme de la creme of Hollywood on her rollercoaster campaign, not to forget the eloquent and well-articulated, former President, Barrack Obama. Her campaign centered on women’s rights as well as the LGBTQ among others- a thing that the Conservatives termed as the ‘woke mind virus.’

On the other hand, Trump who was convicted of felon among other charges was backed by the world’s richest man, Elon Musk among other billionaires and some celebrities although not notable as his opponent’s.

In the build up towards the election, some voters across social media expressed their varying opinions on who they would vote for. For example, one of the voters said that ‘whatever the king wants, the king gets” in regards to LeBron James’ endorsement of Kamala Harris.

These voters labeled as swing voters were expected to favor the Democrats since they are easily influenced by celebrities and other factors but Trump won almost in all the swing states.

But how does the US election translate to the Ugandan terrain?

Celebrities in Ugandan politics are not a new thing. Several politicians have in fact had musicians performing at their rallies. An endorsement from a celebrity is such a big thing back here. President Museveni is one of those who has relied on the support of these celebrities most notably in 2015-16 when most of the big stars composed a song for him dubbed Tubonga Nawe. This was crucial for him to get back into State House.

The rise of the National Unity Platform (NUP) and it’s leader, Hon. Robert Kyagulanyi Ssentamu alias Bobi Wine has seen celebrities make a huge exodus into politics. Several musicians campaigned and endorsed him in the 2021 general elections. But on the opposing side, the NRM, there were also some big musicians such as Bebe Cool, Dr. Jose Chameleone, and Eddy Kenzo among others.

These celebrities are like a cult such that their fans will vote for whatever they endorse even if they differ from what it presents. In fact some of the elected officials currently got into the positions they are in simply because they are celebrities or were endorsed by celebrities most notably NUP MPs.

As much as celebrities wield a great deal of power, it’s difficult to predict whether this can directly influence voters. For instance people might turn out in huge numbers to rallies but won’t tick you on the ballot.

Besides, these rallies are not a true reflection of the general population. There are many people across a nation that might not attend rallies or express their political opinions on social media. They make their voices heard on the ballot. Therefore celebrity endorsements might give a false sense of victory prematurely.