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'Anti-Woke' Entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy Joins GOP Presidential Primary Field

'This is a cultural movement to create a new American dream,' former tech CEO says in launch video

February 21, 2023

Vivek Ramaswamy, an entrepreneur and Republican political activist dubbed the "CEO of Anti-Woke," is running for president, he announced Tuesday night.

Ramaswamy, who left his job as a biotech executive in 2021 to publish Woke, Inc: Inside Corporate America's Social Justice Scam, launched his campaign during an interview with Fox News host Tucker Carlson. In a subsequent campaign video, the Ohio native decried the "woke left" for advancing what he called "psychological slavery" and pledged to "revive American exceptionalism."

"This isn't a political campaign, this is a cultural movement to create a new American dream for the next generation," Ramaswamy said.

Ramaswamy joins a Republican primary field that already includes former president Donald Trump and former South Carolina governor Nikki Haley. Though he is a longshot to emerge as the party's nominee, his campaign is unlikely to lack cash—Forbes in 2016 named Ramaswamy one of America's "richest entrepreneurs under 40," and the bestselling author counts billionaire Peter Thiel as a business partner.

Trump, Haley, and Ramaswamy will likely face increased competition in the coming months, with candidates including former secretary of state Mike Pompeo, former vice president Mike Pence, and Florida governor Ron DeSantis all expected to enter the primary.