Kanye West For President? Chicago, Illinois Says No!
Kanye West has just received a rather disappointing news with regards to his 2020 U.S. presidential bid.
The Grammy Award winner appears to be having some trouble landing on the official ballot as an independent nominee in his hometown in Chicago, Illinois.
Kanye West Booted Off in His Hometown
It came after the Chicago-born rapper fell short in the number of valid signatures needed to be considered as an independent presidential candidate.
According to the Chicago Tribune, the state's election officials found out that 1,900 of the 3,128 signatures that the music icon submitted were invalid.
In order for the presidential hopeful to put his name in the official ballot, he must submit 2,500 signatures. Unfortunately, the hearing officer only recorded 1,200 valid signatures.
Although it is unclear why the said signatures were considered invalid, TMZ cited that the issues might be due to "fake names, fake addresses, unregistered voters in Illinois or illegible signatures."
On the brighter side, the Yeezy creator still has until August 21 to secure evidence showing that the submitted signatures are legal. However, Ed Mullen, one of the lawyers questioning West's petition, mentioned that he "is virtually certain to be kicked off the ballot."
"In my case against #KanyeWest , IL Bd of Elections records examination today finds him 1,300 valid signatures short of the minimum required, meaning he is virtually certain to be kicked off the ballot in IL," he wrote.
Kanye West Face Charges Over Voter Fraud?
Meanwhile, the "Flashing Lights" artist has to withdraw his nomination in New Jersey amid the accusations over voter fraud, as cited by Fox News.
It came after election lawyer Scott Salmon filed charges against the father-of-four due to signature counterfeit.
"Literally every single signature on there came from the same person. Signatures that were clearly identical signatures where the signed name didn't match the printed name, where there was a first name but no last name, where it included a street address but, no town," Salmon said.
Aside from his hometown, Kanye was also removed in several states as he failed to make it to the official ballot.
These include Michigan, Florida, Texas, South Carolina and 21 other states as the deadline for the petition has ended.
It was reported that the presidential hopeful dropped $30,000 to be included on the ballot, while he spent $35,000 for filing fees to appear in the poll in Oklahoma.
Will Kanye Make It As The Next Us President?
Kanye West has been in the headlines for months after he made his shocking announcement on Twitter regarding his political ambition.
The billionaire music icon, who was once a vocal supporter of President Donald Trump, ditched the current U.S. president and even called the presumptive Democratic rival and former Vice-President Joe Biden "not special."
"I'm not saying Trump's in my way, he may be a part of my way. And Joe Biden? Like, come on man, please. You know? Obama's special. Trump's special. We say Kanye West is special. America needs special people that lead. Bill Clinton? Special. Joe Biden's not special," West told Forbes.
It also triggered his marriage woes with wife Kim Kardashian after his controversial first presidential campaign in South Carolina, where he confessed that he and the reality star considered aborting their eldest daughter North.
