To someone who has not spent a significant amount of time on social media, Colorado Governor Jared Polis’s tweet on Sunday implicitly endorsing Vice President Kamala Harris would be as comprehensible as ancient hieroglyphics. Polis posted three emojis to X, formerly known as Twitter: “🥥🌴🇺🇲.” He then ended a subsequent post providing explicit written support for Harris with the same three emojis.

Many Harris fans have added the coconut and palm tree emojis to their social media handles, a shorthand for support. Her online supporters self-describe as “coconut-pilled,” much like people who fall down right-wing internet rabbit holes became known as “red-pilled.”

Knowledge of Harris and the coconut tree went from an internet joke to important context in the wake of President Joe Biden’s announcement that he would not seek reelection on Sunday and his endorsement of Harris moments later. Memes are important currency for the terminally online, a population largely comprised of young people who will not be reached by cable advertising or classic campaign mailers. In a political era built on vibes, internet jokes can be as significant as actual campaigning.

The coconut emoji references a now-infamous Harris quote that transformed from an ironic meme to an earnest display of support. In a speech in May last year, Harris quoted her mother. “My mother … would give us a hard time sometimes, and she would say to us, ‘I don’t know what’s wrong with you young people. You think you just fell........

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