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US election: New TikTok trend sees Gen Z ‘cancelling out’ their parents and partners' votes
Social media users are making videos vowing to fill out their ballot to “cancel” votes that their parents and partners cast.
A new TikTok trend is now helping get Gen Z to the polls ahead of Election Day. Social media users are making videos vowing to fill out their ballot to “cancel” votes that their parents cast. Most of these TikTokers do not reveal who they are voting for. However, many have disclosed that they will be voting for Kamala Harris to “cancel out” the votes their parents cast for Donald Trump.
A recent NBC News survey has found that Harris has a strong lead among Gen Z voters. This could come across as a bit of a surprise as the vice president previously said that young people in the 18-24 age demographic are “stupid."
Harris, however, recently walked back on her claim, saying during a sit-down town hall alongside former Rep. Liz Cheney that she loves Gen Z. Her new comments were widely criticised on social media, with many alleging that she “can't keep track of her lies.”
The new TikTok trend
Meanwhile, as the new TikTok trend is gaining momentum, one creator who garnered millions of views with her clip wrote, “Just a dad & daughter duo off to cancel out each other’s votes.”
“Going to cancel out my parents’ vote today,” TikTok user Abigail Grace wrote beneath a video that showed her ready for the voting booth.
While the trend might initially come across as unpleasant, some have pointed out that it implies that families can together make it through the divisive election season. 19-year-old McKenzie Owens, who is a first-time voter, told NBC News that the trend can make people realise “that people can co-exist even though nowadays politics can also drive people apart.” While the Pennsylvania woman had also posted about “canceling” her boyfriend’s vote, she chose not to disclose who she will be voting for.
Becca Puga, a 28-year-old student from Utah, joked on TikTok about cancelling her father’s vote. She said that her dad would find the trend “funny” and not offensive. “Although they are very conservative, very Christian, they raised me to have my own thoughts and values, and they give me space to do that,” Puga said. “So when I posted that, I wasn’t worried about any family member seeing it, because my dad would think that that’s funny.”
On the other hand, some TikTokers have been boasting that they and their families and partners are on the same political page. “Leaving the polls except neither of us canceled each other’s votes out,” wrote a creator named Jess, captioning the clip, “Cancelling my fiances vote out??? Couldnt’ be me.”
“Voting against your partner? Couldn’t be us,” TikTokker Alexis Voss wrote.
