Why Kanye West's Ballot Is So Concerning

On November 3, 2020 Kanye West cast his vote for president, in person in Park County, Wyoming. The rapper confirmed his vote via a tweet which quickly went viral. West, who made national headlines in the summer of 2020 for throwing himself into the 2020 presidential race, can only win the presidency himself if enough American voters write him in (via Vox). Despite his slim chances, the music sensation has spent most of election day tweeting out what appears to be his campaign platform, which includes," We must and will cure homelessness and hunger. We have the capability as a species."

You won't be shocked to learn that Kanye West, decked out in a bright blue sweatshirt, voted for himself and his vice presidential candidate, Michelle Tidball. You might know West, but in case you know nothing at all about Tidball — and, in the very off chance that they are elected to the U.S. presidency — Tidball, says Forbes, is a biblical life coach who does not watch the news. 

There's the fact that if Kanye West gains enough votes in the 2020 general election he could, as Vox points out "conceivably spoiler if the general election is close," taking away key votes from the Biden and Harris or Trump and Pence tickets. That's why Jennifer Anniston went out of the way to warn her followers not to vote for Kanye — and that's also why Kourtney Kardashian's fans were furious that she posted a picture of herself modeling a "Vote Kanye" hat. 

But West's ballot is problematic for another reason. As the rapper himself admits in his tweet, Kanye West cast his first vote today... ever. And when he did so (at least he was wearing a face mask), he neglected to vote for any of the other issues or politicians on the ballot. It's hard to think about his vote as anything more than a poorly timed publicity stunt. And the Twitterverse is busy calling him out. "First ever vote? How can people take you serious as a president if you never took politics serious," wrote one amazed Twitter user. "You forgot to vote for the other offices," another reprimanded him, "or were you planning on running the entire country by yourself too?"