Mark Cuban Says He’d Vote for Kanye West Over Trump

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Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban on Saturday gave a partial endorsement to Kanye West’s prospective 2020 presidential campaign, following Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk’s lead with a message on Twitter.

“If there was Rank Choice voting available and Kanye West was on the ballot with Joe Biden and Donald Trump, I would have Kanye West ahead of Donald Trump,” Cuban wrote. Ranked-choice voting allows voters to list their preferences, and eliminates candidates from subsequent ballots until one wins a majority of support.

Cuban was critical of Trump during the 2016 presidential campaign, but did allow him to hold an autumn rally at his basketball team’s home arena at the American Airlines Center in Dallas. While Cuban has refused to rule out running himself, he said in a June interview that polling he commissioned to assess his standing with voters estimated he would receive only about 25 percent support in a three-way race against Biden and Trump — which he did not view as worthwhile.

West on Saturday wrote a message on Twitter that suggested he was interested in running for president this year. “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,” he wrote. Musk followed up with a less reserved endorsement than Cuban, replying, “You have my full support!”

It’s at least the third time West has suggested he planned to run for president, He said at a 2015 MTV music award event he had “decided in 2020 to run for president,” and said at a music festival last year that he was interesting in running in 2024. He has more recently been promoting an upcoming music album, God’s Country, that may be related to his latest step into the limelight.

West and his wife, Kim Kardashian West, have maintained a relationship with Trump since he entered the White House. He posed for pictures with the president at Trump Tower in New York City just a month after his election, while his while his wife has visited the White House on numerous occasions to advocate for criminal justice reform.

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