- The rapper and business mogul Kanye West provided more details about his surprise bid for the presidency in an interview with Forbes.
- West said he was OK with the prospect of siphoning off Black voters from presumptive Democratic nominee Joe Biden, which could damage Biden’s chances of winning in November.
- “To say that the Black vote is Democratic is a form of racism and white supremacy,” West told Forbes.
- He said that though he no longer supports President Donald Trump, he would not run against him as a Republican.
- Instead, he said he is creating his own political party: the Birthday Party.
- Visit Business Insider’s homepage for more stories.
The rapper and business mogul Kanye West told Forbes he no longer supports President Donald Trump and is happy siphoning Black voters off Joe Biden as he discussed his unexpected bid for the 2020 presidency.
West’s announcement, made via tweet last Saturday, that he was launching a late-stage bid for the presidency made a splash on social media – and was greeted with skepticism in many quarters.
In an interview with Forbes, published Wednesday, West gave more detail about his decision to run, telling the magazine: “Like anything I’ve ever done in my life, I’m doing to win.”
He told the publication that he would not be running as a Republican or Democrat but creating his own party: The Birthday Party.
Some have seen West's run as a plot to weaken Biden's voter base.
When asked whether he was helping Trump clinch a second term by taking away Black voters from Joe Biden, he said: "I'm not denying, I just told you. To say that the Black vote is Democratic is a form of racism and white supremacy."
The reason why the Trump campaign worked @kanyewest via @elonmusk though is he can still siphon off 10,000s of thousands of votes via write-in bc he's a celeb. He doesn't need ballot access!
This is esp true among young black men, who in polling are a softer demo for Biden/Dems https://t.co/mUneRtuken
— Rachel "The Doc" Bitecofer 📈🔭🍌 (@RachelBitecofer) July 5, 2020
However, West was critical of President Donald Trump - for whom he's expressed support in the past.
"It looks like one big mess to me," he said of Trump's recent performance as president. "I don't like that I caught wind that he hid in the bunker."
But he went on to temper his criticism, saying: "Trump is the closest president we've had in years to allowing God to still be part of the conversation."
He also said he would not run against Trump as a Republican.
"I would run as a Republican if Trump wasn't there. I will run as an independent if Trump is there," West told Forbes.
West is one of the few celebrities who have expressed support for Trump, and in a recent Wall Street Journal interview likened criticism of his backing of the president to a form of racial profiling.
But some have questioned whether Kanye's bid is even serious, pointing out that the star has not filed official papers to declare his candidacy or create a campaign infrastructure.
It is already too late for West to file as an independent candidate in four states, as Business Insider reported Saturday.
In the Forbes interview, West also dismissed claims that the announcement was a publicity stunt for his new album.
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