"I feel like I could help a lot of people," says Donaldson. "A lot of people know my face, but don't know my politics."
Donaldson, 31, will be just about be age-eligible to run for president in 2028. Better known by his YouTube persona Mr Beast, Donaldson is best known for his large-scale challenges, ostentatious spending and philanthropy. His YouTube channel currently has 285 million subscribers, making him the most followed individual on YouTube.
"I have a great base to start with - everyone in America already knows who I am and what I'm about. I never could have had my success if I wasn't American - I mean, what other countries would let me deploy people into, like, the wild to survive for a YouTube challenge? But I'm allowed to do that, you know, I'm allowed to find a homeless person on the street and give them a Cybertruck, and I'm allowed to record that and make money off of it. And that's what America is all about, that kind of freedom. You know, it doesn't matter who you are, if you're rich or poor or white or black, anyone is allowed to start a business. Anyone could be like me, you know? I worked hard to earn my money, and I deserved it, and anyone could do that."
keeping relevance among that base for a decade is probably impossible
if he runs in 2028 we'll have a lot of very funny conversations around the nation where parents mention donaldson and children squeee and do a fortnite dance in response. would be a good way to start some intergenerational conversations.