Tiktok, Instagram, X and other social platforms became consumed by political news once election results were in. Reactions ranged from grief to celebration. Each scroll was a fresh face with varied ideas of what America’s future may look like. But when registering the outcome, many people spoke out on these platforms about a singular emotion: feeling betrayed. Not by America, not by voters, but by astrologists.
Jess Rauchberg, a researcher on digital media cultures, was interviewed by Business Insider regarding the crowd’s reaction. Rachberg expressed how many “fans” felt that “the rug’s been pulled out from underneath them.
"I placed my trust in you as a follower, and I trusted your brand, but your brand is no longer credible," she said. "You see people who are really, really frustrated and who feel betrayed."
Similarly, the rest of the internet was left devastated and confused.
An anonymous spiritualist interviewed on the subject provided two alternating ideas of political astrology.
“On one hand, it’s disheartening. There is a niche to reading charts & understanding the stars. The job of those who can channel energy, is to provide for those who can’t. It should be looked at as karmic responsibility. So, when you use your big numbers and platform to speak out, you need to have complete confidence in what you are feeding your audience. They should feel like they can trust you. Political predictions during such a groundbreaking election means stepping on eggshells- so if your predictions bring false hope- you’ve not just let down or embarrassed yourself. You’ve broken the trust of those who had faith in you- and the future of America.”
A smaller astrology content creator spoke out on her Tiktok page, criticizing those who followed the predictions blindly and then chastised the entire astrology community. According to her analysis and the agreement of other micro-influencers- Harris’ chart never suggested a win. In fact, looking back at the Tiktok algorithm during the heated weeks pre-election, they acknowledge there were only astrologers with large followings & marketable content predicting a Harris win. Astrologers who made correct predictions, or didn’t make any at all, spoke out post-election, warning people to watch what they consume. But there still seemed to be a stronger faith in what “could” still be.
Even post-election, social media algorithms were ridden with astrology influencers scrapping every last view they could. While some stood tall explaining where they were wrong, others begged for mercy. Many used their platform to explain why the election went wrong instead. How it wasn’t supposed to happen, and how they predict Kamala will make a comeback.
Although both political parties have held their heads too high to admit it, there is always a lingering stage of denial among voters who didn’t see the outcome they craved so badly. For most, this election was crucial in so many ways. Many democratic voters voted in favor of reproductive & LGBTQ+ rights, or in favor of lower taxes for low/middle class families. Many Trump voters voted in hopes America would revert to the economic state during his last presidency. Either way, Americans seemed eager to put their vote out into the world. Denial is a key part of grief-because it is where we see the most action. Republicans stormed the capitol on January 6th, 2021. This was an act of violence fueled by denial of what the future may look like with a democratic president. And although democrats mocked republicans for not accepting Biden’s win- it seems denial isn’t quite a “Republican thing,” but a human thing instead.
Regarding astrology, even republican voters were bringing light to it, ridiculing democrats for having false hope in their “bad feelings” about the election. Although it felt impossible, it doesn’t take away from its tangibility, especially regarding major beliefs present in American politics.
Through initial reaction and later bargaining, we can use this moment of history to forever understand how promises in the media can be misleading even if they look so reassuring. We can take the opportunity from a perspective of neutrality— to understand stages of grief and how they present themselves in major political events. Voters, politicians, and astrologers are all human first.
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