2020 Elections

Mark Cuban says he needs permission to run for president: 'My family voted it down'

Key Points
  • Mark Cuban will not be running for president, the billionaire and "Shark Tank" star announces during an interview Monday.
  • If his family gave him permission to run, Cuban would do so as an independent, he has said.
  • Cuban has called politicians "the least trusted of any profession."
Businessman Mark Cuban listens as he is introduced at the South by Southwest Music Film Interactive Festival in Austin, Texas, March 12, 2017.
Brian Snyder | Reuters

Self-made billionaire, "Shark Tank" star and owner of the Dallas Mavericks Mark Cuban won't be attaching "2020 presidential candidate" to his name, at least for now.

"My family voted it down. ... If you can change their mind I'm all in," a smiling Cuban said in an interview Monday with Neil Cavuto on Fox Business Network.

If he were to enter his name into the 2020 race, Cuban would run as an independent, he hinted earlier in May. Cuban had said that the multitude of Democratic candidates were all politicians — the "least trusted of any profession."

Former Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz flirted with running as an independent, but ended his exploration of a presidential bid earlier in September. Sen. Bernie Sanders identifies as an independent because he considers himself a democratic socialist, although he caucuses with Democrats in Washington and is running for the Democratic nomination.

So far, about 20 candidates are vying for the Democratic nomination, while four Republicans have launched likely ill-fated primary challenges to President Donald Trump.

Billionaire Mark Cuban on breaking up big tech, Facebook and more
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Billionaire Mark Cuban on breaking up big tech, Facebook and more