EU Commission Calls on Taylor Swift to Help Mobilize Youth for European Parliament Elections
Vice President of the European Commission Margaritis Schinas expressed hope that American singer Taylor Swift will assist in mobilizing youth for the European Parliament elections in June of this year when she visits Europe for her concert tour, as reported by Politico.
"No one can mobilize youth better than young people themselves," Schinas stated during a press conference on Wednesday.
"Young people can mobilize their peers to participate more than Commission members," he added.
Schinas spoke about the "importance of young Europeans participating in this year's European elections," scheduled from June 6 to 9. Experts anticipate a challenging summer for the EU, as far-right movements gain ground in public opinion polls.
"Now is the moment for them (the youth) to express themselves at the ballot box, praise or criticize European politics. Therefore, I believe it is crucial for us to have, as we did in 2019, a high level of participation by young Europeans in the June elections," he said.
"I really hope that someone from her (Taylor Swift's) media team is following this press conference and will convey our request to her," Schinas emphasized.
Engaging young voters is not new for the singer. In September of last year, she urged her 272 million Instagram followers to register to vote, resulting in over 35,000 registrations reported by Vote.org within a few hours, a 23% increase from the previous year.
Throughout her nearly two-decade career, Taylor Swift has been involved in U.S. politics and has often been at the centre of the country's enduring cultural wars, despite some earlier attempts to stay out of political affairs.
As the June elections for the European Parliament approach, where Schinas stated that a high level of youth participation is "crucial" for democracy, the Vice President of the Commission hopes Swift can do the same for the EU.
Taylor Swift begins the European leg of her record-breaking Eras Tour in spring 2024, shortly before the European Parliament elections. She will perform in Paris on May 9, on "Europe Day."
As a reminder, Taylor Swift was named Time's Person of the Year 2023.