Athletes are playing a growing role in the 2024 election. Is that a good thing?

The Harris-Walz campaign revealed yet another themed coalition of supporters this weekend, sharing the group of high-profile athletes who will work to win the White House for Democrats.
“Athletes for Harris” features stars from a variety of major sports, including the NFL, NBA and professional tennis, according to screenshots of a press release shared on X by Allan Smith of NBC News.
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz followed up Saturday’s announcement by appearing at a Big Ten college football game between Michigan and Minnesota.
He tailgated with fans, chatted with students and posed for a photo with the Minnesota cheerleaders and mascot.
Former President Donald Trump, meanwhile, was at the high-profile matchup between Georgia and Alabama.
Trump sat with Kid Rock, Alabama’s two senators and former NFL running back Herschel Walker.
He was cheered by many in the crowd when the announcers noted his presence, according to a video shared on X by AL.com.
This weekend’s events illustrate athletes’ growing role in the 2024 election.
Both parties are leaning on friendships with top athletes and coaches — and relationships with top sports programs — to connect with potential voters.
In its press release about “Athletes for Harris,” the Harris-Walz campaign noted that endorsements from athletes and commercials during major sporting events enable campaigns to connect with key voting blocs.
“Sports and gaming are critical ways to break through to politically diverse audiences. Already, Team Harris-Walz is leveraging big sports moments to reach high-male viewer audiences with targeted paid media investments and earned media in battleground states … and mobile billboards targeting Latino voters at boxing matches, La Liga matches and El Súper Clásico,” the press release said, per Smith’s post.
Now, the campaign is hoping to build on those ads with supportive statements from athletes and coaches, including the 10 co-chairs of “Athletes for Harris.”
These are the “Athletes for Harris” co-chairs, according to CBS News.
“I have known Vice President Harris for over 25 years, and you can count on her to deliver on what she says she is going to do,” Johnson, a Los Angeles Lakers legend, said in a statement, according to Fox News. “She’ll be a president for all people, no matter the race, language, sexual orientation, or party line.”
Also on Saturday, the Harris-Walz campaign unveiled endorsements from 15 members of the Pro Football Hall of Fame, including Emmitt Smith and Calvin Johnson, per Fox News.
“Athletes are among the most trusted voices for key voting blocs, especially young men, making them uniquely qualified campaigners for Vice President Harris and Governor Walz’s campaign,” the campaign said in its statement.
Although it’s clear that presidential campaigns love to build relationships with athletes and coaches, it’s less clear if sports fans want to see that type of endorsement.
A poll from this time last year found that only half of Americans (51%) support athletes using their platforms to comment on social and political issues.
“The poll tells us that advocacy of social and political causes by pro athletes remains a divisive issue. What some see as an athlete taking a principled stand others may interpret as pushing a personal agenda,” said Mark Hyman, an expert on sports journalism at the University of Maryland, in the school’s coverage of the 2023 poll. “That won’t deter some athletes from using their voices. But it can — and often does — come at a cost.”
The poll found that Americans are more supportive of athletes using their platforms to promote voting in general.
That helps explain why Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes was widely applauded when he recently spoke about why he won’t be endorsing Trump or Harris — but will be encouraging people to vote.
“I think I’ve always said I don’t want my place and my platform to be used to endorse a candidate or do whatever either way. I think my place is to inform people to get registered to vote, it’s to inform people to do their own research and then make the best decision for them and their family,” he said on Sept. 11, as the Deseret News previously reported.