Kanye West's alleged presidential campaign may or may not have already come to an end, but he's now set to actually appear on one state's ballot.
West, who claimed in a tweet earlier this month he was running for president in the 2020 election despite having not yet taken any steps toward doing so, will appear on the ballot in Oklahoma, USA Today reports. His representative paid the $35,000 fee and filed the paperwork required by the Wednesday deadline, according to The Associated Press.
"Kanye West is now qualified as an independent candidate for president of the United States in Oklahoma and will appear on the general election ballot," a Oklahoma State Election Board spokesperson said in a statement, per Fox News.
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This is despite the fact that reports emerged this week suggesting West was exiting the race entirely, if he ever actually entered it. In a recent New York magazine report, Steve Kramer, who West had apparently hired to get him on the ballot in Florida and South Carolina, said, "He's out." Entertainment Tonight also quotes a source as saying, "Kanye isn't planning to run in the 2020 election after careful consideration," consideration that apparently wasn't taken prior to his tweet.
Still, West seemingly did recently file paperwork with the Federal Election Commission, TMZ reports, although he hasn't yet filed the Statement of Candidacy form that actually "triggers candidacy status under federal campaign finance law," the report notes. Either way, by the time West had tweeted out his supposed plans to run for president, the deadline to appear on the November ballot had passed in multiple states, meaning West's grand plans to run the White House like Wakanda will probably have to wait another four years.
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