Harris or Trump: Who Is Primed to Get the Joe Rogan Endorsement?

Joe Rogan is a bit of an enigma when it comes to his personal politics, but he may soon play a pivotal role on the homestretch of this fall’s election.

The hugely popular podcaster, who boasts 14.5 million Spotify followers, said in 2020 he’d vote for Bernie Sanders but has since platformed far-right guests like the conspiracist Alex Jones on his show.

Now with three weeks until Election Day, rumors have swirled that Kamala Harris is in talks to go on The Joe Rogan Experience—an appearance one communications specialist told the Daily Beast would be a “HUGE risk.”

Whether that risk may lead to a coveted Rogan endorsement remains unclear. Representatives for the comedian ignored emails from the Daily Beast that asked if he would publicly announce his support for Harris or Donald Trump ahead of Election Day on Nov. 5. The show has also not revealed if Trump or Harris would appears as guests at some point this month, but has teased on X that Trump may soon make an appearance.

Despite not making an official endorsement this cycle, the 57-year-old Rogan hasn’t shied away from talking politics on his podcast and making clear he’s not an outright fan of either presidential hopeful.

Rogan called Harris “the worst” in July, telling his guest Michael Malice that it bothered him to see her portrayed as a “hero” and the “solution” after Joe Biden’s disaster of a presidential debate. He also pondered if she was medicated with anti-anxiety pills because of her “disconnected ramblings.”

The podcaster had even harsher words for Trump in 2022. After revealing he’d rejected Trump’s multiple requests to appear on his show, Rogan said he was “not a Trump supporter in any way, shape, or form.” Rogan specified he would not let Trump—a man he called an “an existential threat to democracy itself”—on his show because he was “not interested in helping him.”

Perhaps Rogan’s favorite candidate of this cycle is no longer in the race. He said in August he was a fan of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as a candidate and person because he wasn’t aligned with partisan politics.

“He’s the only one that makes sense to me,” Rogan said. “He doesn’t attack people, he attacks actions and ideas, but he’s much more reasonable and intelligent. I mean, the guy was an environmental lawyer and he cleaned up the East River. He’s a legitimate guy.”

Trump was clearly peeved by Rogan’s pseudo-endorsement, posting to Truth Social shortly after the comments, “It will be interesting to see how loudly Joe Rogan gets BOOED the next time he enters the UFC Ring???”

Trump’s beef with Rogan appeared to be short-lived, however. That’s likely because Rogan partially backtracked his comments a day later about RFK—who’s since dropped out and endorsed Trump—and offered praise for how Trump handled being nearly assassinated in Pennsylvania.

“For the record, this isn’t an endorsement,” Rogan wrote on X about his Kennedy comment. “This is me saying that I like RFK Jr. as a person and I really appreciate the way he discusses things with civility and intelligence. I also think Trump raising his fist and saying ‘fight!’ after getting shot is one of the most American f—ing things of all time.”

While Rogan has had sharp criticisms of both candidates remaining in the race, a former senior adviser to Harris told the Daily Beast that earning an outright endorsement wouldn’t be Harris’ goal by sitting down with Rogan.

Mike Nellis, who worked as an adviser on a previous Harris campaign and launched “White Dudes for Harris,” said his old boss is hoping to make inroads with even a small portion of Rogan’s large listener base, which is overwhelmingly made up by her weakest demographic—young men.

“It’s less about Joe Rogan’s personal sway and more about the audience he commands,” Nellis said Tuesday. “Rogan reaches a large demographic of young men, which includes a key block of movable voters. While Harris isn’t going to win over white male voters en masse, even small shifts within that group could significantly ease her path to victory.”

Nellis said that an appearance with Rogan would be Harris following the same “savvy strategy” she’s taken by agreeing to be interviewed by Fox News. Nellis added that the increasingly-small cohort of undecided voters who remain in swing states could be who decides the Electoral College, and those voters may be tuned into right-wing cable news or Rogan’s podcast.

“It’s not about the interviewer, it’s about the audience,” he said. “She’s looking for every opportunity to connect with those who might be receptive to her message.”

Others aren’t so convinced Harris stands much to gain much from a Rogan appearance. Among those is Jonathan Alpert, a psychotherapist who studies voters in swing states like Michigan and Pennsylvania and has said publicly that he’s seen a spike in election-related anxiety among patients.

Evelyn Hockstein/Reuters

“Will Rogan’s audience (mainly male and conservative) be swayed? I tend to think not,” Alpert told the Daily Beast in an email. “From what I see, Rogan’s listeners are not undecided at this point. Sure, Harris may humanize herself a bit, try to come across as relatable and cool, and even win over some people, but probably not enough to move the needle.”

On the inverse, however, Alpert said Harris is putting herself at an elevated risk of making a mistake by agreeing to a lengthy sit-down interview with Rogan, who typically has his podcast guests on the air for at least an hour.

“Any missteps or controversies could very well go viral,” he said, “and in this day and age of memes and five-second clips, it could impact a voter’s choice.”

Robbie Vorhaus, a communications and crisis strategist, told the Daily Beast that Harris’ appearance could even act as an “October surprise” of sorts. Whether that surprise is positive or negative would depend on how she does.

Vorhaus said if he had Trump or Harris’ ear, he’d “counsel both to prepare as though their candidacy depended on it.”

“For Trump, it would solidify his male constituency, and for Harris, if she could make Rogan laugh and build rapport, it could tip the scales with undecided male voters,” he said.

With so many eyes on the potential interviews, Vorhaus said both candidates’ advisers to would likely be worried they might falter for even a second.

“One slip-up, gaffe, or brain freeze could derail momentum,” he said.