From coconut trees to 'brat summer,' Kamala Harris' campaign is embracing the memes
It took only a few hours after President Joe Biden announced Sunday he was not seeking reelection for the campaign for president for Vice President Kamala Harris to get to work.
The early hours of the VP's 2024 campaign included the re-branding of the former Biden-Harris HQ X account into Kamala HQ, complete with an official endorsement from Biden, and acknowledgements of a number of Harris-related memes that circled the internet amid speculation about the president's exit from the campaign.
So far, Biden's endorsement of Harris and the internet-friendly communication strategy may be working in her favor: the left-leaning political action committee Act Blue reported Sunday it had raised nearly $50 million following Harris' campaign launch, the single-biggest fundraising day of the 2024 cycle so far.
What do memes have to do with Harris' campaign, and how have they been using them so far? Here's what to know.
Elections: As President Joe Biden steps aside, is America ready for President Kamala Harris?
Just like everyone else, Kamala Harris is also having a 'brat summer'
As the former Biden-Harris HQ account rebranded Sunday into Kamala HQ to support Harris' election campaign, it quickly embraced the support (whether ironic or not is still to be determined) that had been growing for the vice president online over the past few months.
The header image is a neon green background reading "kamala hq," in the style of "BRAT," the 2024 album released by the singer Charli XCX that has led to what people are calling a "brat summer."
The Biden campaign’s official account, Biden-Harris HQ, has officially rebranded to Kamala HQ with a ‘brat’ theme. pic.twitter.com/xy4FhdE5h7
— Pop Base (@PopBase) July 22, 2024
Charli XCX, who is British, acknowledged Harris' jump into the race and seemingly endorsed her candidacy Sunday, posting "kamala IS brat."
Harris has also followed Charli XCX on both X and Instagram.
Harris campaign embraces 'coconut tree' meme, love of Venn diagrams
Then there's Kamala HQ account's bio, which simply reads "providing context," a reference to the "coconut tree" meme that came from remarks Harris made in 2023, where she uttered the quote: "You think you just fell out of a coconut tree? You exist in the context of all in which you live and what came before you."
A Sunday night post from the account displays a Venn diagram, a reference to the vice president's love for the illustration used to make a point. This Venn diagram is simple, with Biden HQ in one circle, Harris HQ in another, and "holding Trump accountable" overlapping between the circles in the middle.
— Kamala HQ (@KamalaHQ) July 22, 2024
Should the vice president appear on 'Hot Ones?' The internet thinks so
As Harris' campaign have quickly shown their internet savvy, some have noted that an appearance on the YouTube series "Hot Ones," where celebrities are interviewed while eating increasingly hot chicken wings, would likely benefit her campaign.
we need to get momentum for this going because he's absolutely correct pic.twitter.com/cpJbTW2aL5
— lauren (@Very__Regular) July 21, 2024
Kamala Harris on Hot Ones has the potential to be on the level of Bill Clinton playing saxophone on Arsenio.
— Zach Heltzel ?? (@zachheltzel) July 21, 2024
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Coconut trees, 'brat', Venn diagrams: Kamala HQ embraces the memes