Following the greatest reality show on earth, the 2016 presidential election, there aren’t many things that surprise us anymore. Real estate mogul and reality TV host Donald Trump became No. 45 after beating out a slew of seasoned politicians and other celebrities are having ideations of political grandeur.
Here are some potential celebrities-cum-political powerhouses that we might see in the future.
Cynthia Nixon
The actress who many of us know as Miranda Hobbes from HBO’s Sex and The City is reportedly considering a run for Governor of New York. “Many concerned New Yorkers have been encouraging Cynthia to run for office, and as she has said previously, she will continue to explore it, Rebecca Capellan, Nixon’s publicist said in a statement. If she decides to run, she will go against Democratic Governer Andrew Cuomo.
Stacy Dash
The former Clueless actress turned Fox News commentator announced that she is running for Congress. It first started with a Tweet to her followers hinting that she was considering it. “A number of people online and off have suggested I run for political office,” she wrote on Twitter back in February.”I wanted to see what my online community thinks of this idea as I mull the possibilities. Thoughts?” she added. She will be running in California’s 44th district which includes Compton, San Pedro, North Long Beach, and Watts. Her website, dashtodc.com was created to encourage her fans and supporters to sign-up and join her efforts in becoming a politician.
Kid Rock
Update Oct. 24, 2017: Despite the website, in spite of the T-shirts, Kid Rock is not running for Senate.
“I have people that work for me, they’re on the in, I’m like, ‘F—k no we’re not doing it. But let’s roll with it for a little while. This is awesome,’” Kid Rock told Howard Stern on Tuesday.
But the “All Summer Long” singer left the door open, saying it’s possible if “left-wing keeps f—king” with him.
“If they keep f—king with me in the papers and everything, I’m going to run,” Kid Rock said while laughing. “And I’m going to go to f—king DC, I’m going to beat the shit out of Debbie — whatever the f—k her name is — and then I’m going to go to D.C. and I’m going to smack the living shit out of all of them motherf—kers on the Hill.”
Kid Rock’s seriously-psych-just-kidding Senate bid would have been against Republican Michigan Sen. Debbie Stabenow.
Original:
Singer, rapper (?), Detroit-native and Trump supporter Kid Rock recently unveiled KidRockforSenate.com, a website that he says is a real threat, we mean, promise.
“I have had a ton of emails and texts asking me if this website is real… http://kidrockforsenate.com,” he tweeted. “The answer is an absolute YES.” He noted in a consequent tweet that he “will have a major announcement in the near future.”
If you’re a Michigan voter, “Only God Knows Why” you might have your very own, stringy-haired, tank top wearing senator in 2018.
Then again, Mr. Rock (not to be confused with The Rock) has capitalized on the current political ecosphere by selling “Make America Badass Again” gear, riffing off Trump’s “Make America Great Again” campaign slogan.
Kanye West
Before Trump took the Oval Office, Yeezy announced onstage at the 2015 VMAs that he planned a 2020 bid.
“And yes, I have decided, as you probably could have guessed by this moment, I have decided in 2020 to run for president,” he said at the end of a very Kanye rant.
We all had a good laugh and even then-President Obama got in on the fun giving West some advice.
“Do you really think that this country is going to elect a black guy from the South Side of Chicago with a funny name to be president of the United States?” Obama asked. “That is crazy. That’s cray!”
Obama also joked about Trump running at the 2011 White House Correspondents’ Dinner, and we all see how that turned out.
West since confirmed he is for reals about this.
“When I talk about the idea of being president, I’m not saying I have any political views,” he told the BBC. “I don’t have views on politics, I just have a view on humanity, on people, on the truth. If there is anything that I can do with my time and my day, to somehow make a difference while I’m alive, I’m going to try to do it.”
West publicly supported Trump prior to a public breakdown and suggested he’d wait until 2024 to run (to allow POTUS to serve two terms), but withdrew his support (and tweets) after Trump proposed his travel ban on Muslim-majority countries.
Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson
For a man with such a hard nickname, America sure is cuddly on Johnson. His name as a presidential contender was sort of a joke, but as the joke gained steam, it got less… jokier.
In May, Johnson told GQ that he considers the idea of one day running for president “a real possibility.”
Then, someone filed with the Federal Election Commission to launch a “Run the Rock 2020” campaign committee.
Would he be a good commander in chief? Who knows, but he can sure give Putin one hell of a “You sure you wanna come at me, bro?” eyebrow.
Yes, we now have an official draft @TheRock political committee registered with the @FEC. pic.twitter.com/ylQxuZkOev
— Dave Levinthal (@davelevinthal) July 10, 2017
Caitlyn Jenner
Lifelong Republican, Olympian and reality TV star Caitlyn Jenner has not announced anything final, but she has added to the rumors that she might throw her hat in and work on the “political side of activism.”
“Can I do a better job from the outside?” Jenner told radio host John Catsimatidis. “Kind of working the perimeter of the political scene, being open to talking to anybody? Or are you better from the inside, and we are in the process of determining that. Yeah, but I would look for a senatorial run.”
Dennis Hof
Owner of seven Nevada brothels, including the famous Moonlite Bunny Ranch, Dennis Hof is running for assemblyman in Nevada’s 36th District in 2018.
“Like, don’t bother me about weed, don’t bother me about who has sex with who and don’t bother me about abortion,” the Libertarian-turned Republican told Metro in a previous interview. “I think that’s people’s choices, but now I’ve switched to the Republican party with the caveat: don’t bother me with those three issues ‘cause I don’t want to hear it.”
He’ll certainly have some supporters since, as he told us, he believes healthcare should pay for hookers.
Antonio Sabato Jr.
The former soap opera star is actually running for office. In July 2016, while giving a speech at the Republican National Convention, he admitted that he “never considered [himself] very political.”
Less than a year later, the Calvin Klein model announced his Congressional run in California.
Anyway, here’s a giant photo of my face. pic.twitter.com/QxX6UJyrtc
— Stefan Heck (@boring_as_heck) May 28, 2017
Mark Zuckerberg
The father of Facebook (well, the one who took all the credit) might be positioning himself for a future presidential run. If Hillary Clinton’s 2016 loss taught us anything, it’s that the voters want relatable candidates and the Z-man is kind of… robotic, to put it nicely. But he did decide to visit and meet the residents of every state in the nation, which kind of sounds like campaigning.
Vanity Fair’s Nick Bilton gave some reasons why the father of two human babies could work as POTUS, including:
– He’s been meeting with heads of state since his 20s.
– He thinks globally.
– He is equipped to handle artificial intelligence and cyber warfare.
– He has said he believes “religion is very important” despite previously stating he was an atheist.
– According to a Facebook proxy statement, Zuckerberg could run for office and still control the company.
– Obama’s former campaign manager joined the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative.
– He loves games that involve conquering the world or building civilizations.
– Many who have known him have said he “wants to be emperor someday.”
Mark Zuckerberg meeting truckers in Iowa looks like a movie about an alien who slowly learns to feel pic.twitter.com/9if4vUpq4V
— Zach Schonfeld (@zzzzaaaacccchhh) June 24, 2017
Chris Rock
The comedian Chris Rock (the third Rock on this list so far) tweeted that he planned to run for president in 2020.
He was only kidding, but he did play a president in the movie “Head of State.” Dennis Hof might want to hook up with Rock who joked in a stand-up routine that if fellatio is what made Bill Clinton such a good president, the White House should hire a fleet of prostitutes. Like a Secret Service of hookers.
Michelle Obama/Chris Rock 2020? Jus’ sayin’.
I’m gonna run in 2020 wish me luck . pic.twitter.com/wkFCv7WrKB
— Chris Rock (@chrisrock) November 10, 2016
Jerry Springer
Talk show host “King of the Trash Heap” Jerry Springer was actually the mayor of mayor of Cincinnati and a one-time congressional candidate. He’s explored the idea of running for senator in the past, but Democrats are starting to chant “Jerry! Jerry! Jerry!”
“I think he has a very strong ability to communicate what I think is the heart of the Democratic message,” former Ohio Governor Ted Strickland told Business Insider in May regarding a potential Ohio gubernatorial tap. “I think he is a superb communicator.”
Gov. John Kasich is not eligible for re-election in 2018 and Springer has said he would consider running if he is “needed by the party.”
Mark Cuban
The sports world isn’t about to be left out and what better places to start than with possibly the most viable candidate, the billionaire owner of the NBA’s Dallas Mavericks Mark Cuban.
Cuban has been a vocal critic of Trump. The men are similar in that they made lots of money in business and are reality TV personalities, but Cuban doesn’t have the scandalous history of Trump — he hasn’t been accused of sexual abuse, racism, stealing money from charities for children with cancer or military veterans. Cuban’s biggest problem is his mouth, which he opens to let words tumble from quite often.
How soon they forget …. pic.twitter.com/VXcfnjj4qX
— Mark Cuban (@mcuban) February 12, 2017
Cuban backed Clinton in 2016, but when asked if he would consider a life in politics, he told Sports Day: “There is no possible way. There’s just no way. And put up with that shinola show? Are you kidding me? There’s just no way that I would put my family through that. Just no chance.”
However, during one of his Twitter exchanges with Trump, Cuban posted an email that warned POTUS the Shark Tank investor “may go after that job someday and it could be against you.”
A source told the New York Post that the 58-year-old running for president is the White House’s “biggest fear.”
“He’s not a typical candidate,” one insider told the Post. “He appeals to a lot of people the same way Trump did.”
“If you believe in the Trump revolution, you can believe a candidate like Mark Cuban could win an election,” the source added. “And Mark is the kind of guy who would drop half a billion dollars of his own money on the race.”
According to an article published by Business Insider in February, Cuban’s “no way” turned into a “We will see.”
The following month while on a SXSW panel, Cuban delivered some issues-oriented quotes which focused on disruption and government regulation.
Mark Cuban 2020?
Curt Schilling
In 2016, the former Major League Baseball pitcher Curt Schilling hinted he was going to run for Massachusetts’s Sen. Elizabeth Warren’s seat in 2018… but he had to ask his team captain first.
“I’ve made my decision. I’m going to run,” Schilling said on Rhode Island radio station WPRO. “But I haven’t talked to Shonda, my wife. And ultimately it’s going to come down to how her and I feel this would affect our marriage and our kids.”
Here’s the full quote from Curt Schilling just now on WPRO about his possible US Senate run against Elizabeth Warren: pic.twitter.com/HKnPyAblGZ
— Ted Nesi (@TedNesi) October 18, 2016
Earlier that year, Schilling posted on Facebook that he would be aiming for the White House in eight years.
Alas in March, the ultra-conservative Schilling endorsed Shiva Ayyadurai to take Warren’s seat.
As of today, from where I sit, you’re my choice for Senator of the state of Mass. in 2018 and it’s not even close. #Fauxcahauntas
— Curt Schilling (@gehrig38) March 1, 2017
Tim Tebow
Tim Tebow, minor league baseball player and former pro-footballer, is a role model who annoys a lot of Americans; however, he isn’t ruling out a new career as President Tebow.
“I don’t know at this time in my life,” he told Fox in 2016. “If there’s a chance to make a difference someday at something, that’s intriguing.”
Tebow’s strong Christian faith might appeal to some conservative voters and his reality TV experience, well, we elected one reality TV star. Why not make it habit?
Peyton Manning
“Like a good neighbor…”
Peyton Manning & Sen. Bob Corker of Tenn. depart the W.H. after President Trump returns from a 4.5 hour outing at Trump National Golf Club. pic.twitter.com/TeWn6KjsqO
— Al Drago (@Al_Drago) June 4, 2017
Mike Freeman from Bleacher Report asked an American Football Conference general manager about a photo of Peyton Manning playing golf with President Trump.
“Peyton Manning will be president one day,” the AFC rep stated simply.
Although Manning has said multiple times he has no interest in running for public office, he has supporters.
“He is a Tennessee hero, and if he should ever choose to use his legendary determination, knowledge and drive in politics, he would be an extremely formidable candidate,” Scott Golden, the Tennessee state party chairman, told the Commercial Appeal in March.
“If he was to become a politician, I assume he’d be incredible at it,” Pat McAfee, one of Manning’s former teammates, told Bleacher Report. “He’s a leader, a tireless worker and a fabulous communicator. I don’t know much about politics, but I think if you have those three traits, you have a chance of being a real world-changer. I hope he gets into it someday; [it] would be great for our country.”
If becoming president would stop Manning from singing, half of America would vote for him just to shut him up; although, if he sings that insurance jingle, he might get Kim Jong-un to crumble.
