Caitlin Clark, the No. 1 pick in the 2024 WNBA Draft, made the most outward political statement of her young career when she liked music superstar Taylor Swift’s Instagram post on Tuesday endorsing Vice President Kamala Harris as the Democratic nominee for president.
Clark did not publicly endorse Harris but explained to reporters on Wednesday the rationale behind liking Swift’s post.
“I have this amazing platform, so I think the biggest thing would be to just encourage people to register to vote,” Clark said. “That’s the biggest thing I can do with the platform that I have and that’s the same thing Taylor did.”
Clark, 22, stressed the importance of being informed about candidates before deciding who to vote for.
“Continue to educate yourself on the candidates that we have, the policies that they’re supporting – I think that’s the biggest thing you can do,” Clark said.
Clark, who plays for the Indiana Fever, has been guarded when discussing topics outside the game for most of her rookie WNBA season. In June, she denounced her name being used to push agendas of racism and misogyny, calling it “disappointing” and “unacceptable.”
“The women in our league deserve the same amount of respect, so people should not be using my name to push those agendas,” Clark said.
Clark liking Swift’s endorsement of Harris isn’t the first time WNBA players have made political statements. In August 2020, several WNBA players, including Diana Taurasi, wore T-shirts endorsing Georgia Democratic senate candidate Raphael Warnock, who was running against Republican senator Kelly Loeffler, the Atlanta Dream co-owner at the time. During the 2020 WNBA season, players wore warm-up jerseys that read “Black Lives Matter” and “Say Her Name,” raising awareness about racism and police brutality.
As of Thursday, Swift’s Instagram post had over 10 million likes. Clark, the leading rookie scorer in the WNBA, joined a list of high-profile celebrities to like the post, which included Oprah Winfrey and four-time WNBA champion Sue Bird.
(Photo: Dylan Buell / Getty Images)
