Rapper Kanye West Candidates For US President

Kanye West and family (Photo: Instagram @kanyewestt_official)

JAKARTA - Full of surprises, that is the year 2020. After facing the difficulty of dealing with the spread of COVID-19, now the United States (US) is facing another surprise, namely rapper Kanye West declaring to run as a candidate for US president.

Launching The Guardian, Sunday, July 5, 2020, Kanye West announced the candidacy to coincide with the US Independence Day Celebration, July 4. Kanye West announced this via his Twitter account.

We must now realize the promise of America by trusting God, unifying our vision and building our future. I am running for president of the United States 🇺🇸! # 2020VISION

- ye (@kanyewest) July 5, 2020

"We must now fulfill America's promise by trusting in God, uniting our visions and building our future," said Kanye West.

"I am running for president of the United States," he added.

The post is accompanied by the US flag and the hashtag # 2020VISION. The wife, Kim Kardashian West, replied to the post with the US flag emoji.

It is not certain whether Kanye West submitted any official documents or anything to appear on the state election ballot. The deadline for adding an independent candidate to the ballot has not ended in many states.

In 2018, Kanye West and his wife visited US President Donald Trump at the White House to discuss prison reform. At one such meeting, West wore a red hat that read "Make America Great Again". He also said Trump made him feel like Superman, hugged him and declared: "I like this guy here" (Trump's position as president).

Kanye West himself often pitched the idea of running for president. In 2015, he announced his bid for the White House at the MTV Video Music Awards while accepting the Video Vanguard Award.

"It's all about ideas, my friends. New ideas. People with ideas. People who believe in the truth," West said during a speech.

"And, yes, as you may have guessed at this point, I have decided in 2020 to run for president."

Then in January 2019, Kanye West posted a tweet "2024" which was interpreted as a sign that he would run for president. In November 2019, he said he would move manufacturing for his company Yeezy to the US to create new jobs.

"When I ran for president in 2024, we had created so many jobs that I wouldn't run, but I would," he said.

If it is true that Kanye West runs for president, he will follow a long tradition of independent or third party campaigns that challenge the grip of Democrats and Republicans. In 1992, Ross Perot, an eccentric billionaire from Texas, got 19% of the vote. In 2000, Ralph Nader's Greens received less than 3% of the vote but was widely blamed for sacrificing Democrat Al Gore as president.