Kanye West Missed Deadline To Get On Presidential Ballot In Six States, Candidacy Blasted As Publicity Stunt
Kanye West made a surprise announcement on the Fourth of July that he is running for president, but it appears the rapper is already significantly behind on any attempt to win his way into the White House.
The rapper made the announcement in a tweet posted on Saturday evening, writing that he hoped to bring Americans together in his presidential bid.
“We must now realize the promise of America by trusting God, unifying our vision and building our future,” he tweeted. “I am running for president of the United States!”
The announcement appeared to be genuine, earning support from tech mogul Elon Musk and West’s wife, reality television star and entrepreneur Kim Kardashian West. But as the BBC reported, it remains unclear whether West is planning to follow through with the announcement and has already missed a number of key deadlines to get on the ballot.
West would need to collect signatures and register in states in order to get his name on the ballot, with the deadline to do so already passing in at least six states, including the delegate-rich states of New York and Texas. He would also need to gather considerable resources in order to set up what would be a national campaign.
Though West is worth an estimated $1 billion, a BBC report added that he does not appear to have started any fundraising for the campaign. The closest name in the Federal Election Commission’s database for the November election is someone who goes by “Kanye Deez Nutz West,” a Green Party candidate whose address is listed as “1977 Golddigger Avenue, Suite Yeezus.” The candidate has raised no money.
Others have blasted West’s run as a publicity stunt, believing that the rapper is just trying to generate attention for an upcoming album. Many noted that West has been a vocal supporter of Donald Trump since he took the White House in 2016, believing that a legitimate run by West would likely help Trump win by siphoning votes away from presumptive Democratic candidate Joe Biden.
– Kanye isn’t running. It would be too late for him to even get on the ballot in most states
– This phony announcement is a PR stunt for his new album
– “Trump will win because Kanye is running” isn’t a thing
– Stop falling for doomsday bullshit. We have enough real problems.
— Palmer Report (@PalmerReport) July 5, 2020
As the Independent noted, many others advised people not to give attention to West
“He might as well announce he’s going to the moon. Stop giving this guy free publicity. He’s not running for anything,” one person wrote in response to West’s announcement.
West has not followed up his announcement with any further information about his presidential bid, including his platform or how he intends to raise money for the run.