President Kanye? Fresh Off a New Deal With Gap, West Looks Higher

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Kanye West is used to multitasking, having proved to be a disruptor and innovator in music, fashion and entertainment.

But now — having just secured a new gig overseeing Yeezy’s forthcoming Gap line — West wants to take it all to the next level, and from the Oval Office.

West took to Twitter on Independence Day and declared: “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!”

His wife, Kim Kardashian West, retweeted his political bid with an American flag emoji and tech iconoclast Elon Musk tweeted, “You have my full support!”

Anyone can more or less say anything online and, while West has in the past said he might run for president one day, it could not be learned whether his bid is a serious one. But he comes with an in-built fan base any candidate would envy: West has 29.5 million followers on Twitter, and his wife has 65.5 million (roughly the number of people who voted for Hillary Clinton when she won the popular vote in 2016, but lost in the Electoral College to Donald Trump).

West made his move four months before Election Day and does not appear to have any campaign infrastructure to speak of.

Then again, prior to 2016 Trump was known more for his casino bankruptcies and for his reality TV turn on “The Apprentice” than any political ambitions.

And West has dabbled in politics before, praising Trump and meeting with the president-elect in 2016. The two also had an Oval Office sitdown in 2018. Kardashian West also has met with Trump and lobbied him for criminal justice reform.

Gap was not immediately available for comment on its new partner’s new interest or to offer an endorsement. On Twitter, though, Gap describes itself as standing for, “Optimistic American style,” making it a good fit with West’s ambitions.

If West’s political plans don’t pan out, he can always throw himself into the Yeezy brand at Gap.

Mowalola Ogunlesi is design director for the line, which will be accessibly priced, but West is responsible for the broader creative vision and, no doubt, will be helping to drum up interest.

West maintains sole ownership of the Yeezy brand, valued at $2.9 billion in April. In the deal, he also received warrants for up to 8.5 million shares of Gap stock — equivalent to about 2.3 percent of the retailer’s outstanding shares.

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