Kanye West Spent Over $12 Million of Own Money on Failed Presidential Bid

As many of you suspected, Kanye West’s 2020 presidential campaign was largely self-funded.

As pointed out by People magazine, West’s final Federal Election Commission report confirms he had contributed about $12.4 million of his own money toward the failed campaign. The “Birthday Party” candidate racked in approximately $2 million from outside donors, bringing his total campaign contributions to $14,538,989.74.

West’s team reportedly spent $13.2 million throughout his presidential run. According to People, more than half of that money (about $7.5 million) was spent on his efforts to gain ballot access in as many states as possible; which proved to be difficult for West, as he had missed crucial FEC deadlines and failed to meet the signature requirements in multiple states.

When all was said and done, the multi-hyphenate was granted ballot access in only a dozen states, and reportedly received under 60,000 votes. His strongest showing was in Tennessee followed by Minnesota, where he garnered about 10,000 and 7,600 votes, respectively. 

West announced his long-shot campaign on July 4, 2020, just months before Election Day. Though he struggled to gain support, the 43-year-old would continue to make headlines throughout his presidential run; however, it wasn’t always for positive reasons. West received backlash over a series of controversial comments made during rallies as well as on Twitter. His behavior reportedly caused friction between him and his wife, Kim Kardashian, who recently filed for divorce after six-plus years of marriage.