NEED TO KNOW
- President Donald Trump voiced his support for Sydney Sweeney’s American Eagle ad after learning about her political affiliation
- Following widespread backlash about Sweeney’s AE campaign, Buzzfeed News reported that the actress registered to vote as a Republican in Florida last year
- “She’s a registered Republican? Oh now I love her ad,” Trump told reporters, before offering additional praise in a followup post on Truth Social
Donald Trump is praising Sydney Sweeney’s American Eagle ad — and her political affiliation.
While speaking on camera with reporters in Pennsylvania on Sunday, Aug. 4, the president was informed that Sweeney, 27, had been a registered Republican in Florida for the past year. The detail was first reported by Buzzfeed News on Saturday, citing publicly available voting records that PEOPLE has since reviewed.
Upon learning of her party preference, Trump promptly voiced his support for Sweeney’s recent American Eagle campaign, which has come under fire for its perceived problematic undertones.
“She’s a registered Republican?” the president, 79, said in reply. “Oh now I love her ad.”
“Is that right? Is Sydney Sweeney…” Trump added. “You’d be surprised how many people are Republicans. That’s one I wouldn’t have known, but I’m glad you told me that.”
The ad, featuring a tagline of “Sydney Sweeney has great jeans,” launched on July 23 and has garnered significant online backlash for what critics described as racially charged messaging that hints at genetic superiority.
Throughout the campaign, Sweeney and AE use “jeans” as a play on “genes.” For example, Sweeney says in the ad, “Genes are passed down from parents to offspring, often determining traits like hair color, personality and even eye color.” The camera then pans to her face, and she says, “My jeans are blue.”
Critics have accused the campaign of promoting eugenics — “use of selective breeding to improve the human race,” per the National Institute of Health.
The ad also faced backlash for its sexualization and catering to the male gaze, as well as its parallels to the long-criticized Calvin Klein ad in the 1980s that featured Brook Shields. In that ad, which features similar messaging about passing down characteristics from generation to generation, a 15-year-old Shields says, “You want to know what comes between me and my Calvins? Nothing.”
On Monday morning, Trump put his praise for Sweeney in writing with a glowing endorsement of the American Eagle ad.
“Sydney Sweeney, a registered Republican, has the ‘HOTTEST’ ad out there. It’s for American Eagle, and the jeans are ‘flying off the shelves,’ ” he wrote on Truth Social. “Go get ‘em Sydney!”
Days after the AE campaign launched, Buzzfeed News reported that Sweeney has an active voter registration status with the Florida Republican Party.
The records noted that Sweeney registered on June 14, 2024 — Trump’s 78th birthday — which was right around the time she moved to a $13.5 million home in the Florida Keys. It’s unclear how Sweeney had registered prior to her 2024 move.
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Despite her documented party preference, Sweeney has never commented publicly about her political affiliation, nor endorsed or openly supported Trump.
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