Kamala Harris is being celebrated with coconuts on social media.

“Sometimes my mother would scold us and say, ‘What’s wrong with you guys?! Do you think you just evaporated from a coconut tree?’”

Kamala Harris burst out laughing when she quoted her mother. It was during a speech last May, at an event for a White House initiative to improve opportunities for Latinos, and the vice president continued his thought, with her mother as a reference: You have to understand where you come from, everything has context. Nobody lives in a silo.

A 12-second clip of the speech quickly went viral. It was also a meme that gained new life after Joe Biden’s debate against Donald Trump, which marked the beginning and end of his presidential campaign. One of Biden’s problems was his low approval ratings among young voters. Even Kamala Harris—22 years younger than her president—faced skepticism among voters, but she also had loyal supporters.

The meme was embraced by The coconut-related phrase has been popularized by Harris's young digital audience through influencers and accounts with hundreds of thousands of followers on platforms like Instagram, TikTok and X — and the exotic fruit has become a symbol for Democrats supporting Kamala Harris' candidacy.

This includes, for example, the campaign organization Emily's List, which works to increase the number of female candidates. Supports “Madam Vice President, we stand ready to help,” wrote Senator Brian Schatz of Hawaii, alongside a photo of himself climbing a coconut tree.

Harris's clip was used by artist Britney Spears and British pop star Charli XCX in a medley for the song “Von Dutch”. When she called Kamala Harris a “brat” in an X post, in reference to Charli XCX's album, it also went viral.

For his part, Donald Trump called the Vice President “Laughing Kamala” and said,It's nuts.(“It's Coco”) to the delight of her fans.

Kamala Harris has long been mocked on social media by her political opponents, including in one of her Duration four minutesA cutaway scene in which the phrase “What is possible… without the burden of what was” is repeated in different contexts in a political manner. Through her laughter and mannerisms, she paints a picture of a hypocritical politician who is described as “unoriginal, annoying and largely incompetent.”

But Kamala Harris Followers have repurposed her giggles, frowns and dance moves, using them to celebrate what they see as a smart (almost maniacal) and human politician. Long threads on X (formerly Twitter) have compiled “best of” lists, with the phrase after winning the 2020 election — “We did it, Joe.” – Included.

Coconut has reached beyond the Internet, and there are bars in Washington where you can now order “Pina Kamala shots” all night long for $5 each.

Young voters on the left saw Kamala Harris as too far from the center of the political spectrum, and criticized her background as a tough prosecutor. John Sternbach, who, among other things, hosts the podcast “Western Kabuki,” about internet culture, and who herself shared a series of posts about Kamala Harris, The Washington Post says:

– I still think she represents everything that's wrong with the Democratic Party, but she's funny. It's all about vitality.…Nobody likes Biden. Part of the whole Kamala thing is that things could get a little better.

How big is this coconut effect? It depends on young voters' intentions to actually vote – which ultimately determines who wins the election, regardless of meme trends – so it remains to be seen.

When Joe Biden's candidacy began to be seriously questioned, it re-energized Kamala Harris, and when Biden stepped down, even people from the world of culture and entertainment They expressed their support for her.They include Aaron Sorkin, creator of the TV series “White House” (who has previously criticized Democrats’ inability to find candidates), actors Jamie Lee Curtis, Robert De Niro, and George Takei, producer and screenwriter Damon Lindelof, and artist Katy Perry.