This article is published in partnership with Time.com. The original version can be found here.
By Jack Linshi @jacklinshi
Anti-virus software tycoon John McAfee plans to run for President, the developer confirmed on Tuesday. He will run under his own newly created “Cyber Party.”
McAfee, who teased the official announcement on Twitter, said he decided to run after encouragement from “almost everyone” he knew, CNN Money reports. The self-described “eccentric millionaire,” known for a strange run-in with authorities in Belize three years ago, said his primary motivation to enter the race was the government’s problems with security and surveillance.
“We are losing privacy at an alarming rate — we have none left. We’ve given up so much for the illusion of security and our government is simply dysfunctional,” he said, adding that he plans to release an explainer for his new Cyber Party.
“I have a huge underground following on the web,” he said. “I promise you I will win because I have the votes.”
McAfee said he made his presidential bid official by filing the required documents with the Federal Elections Commission, though the agency could not confirm the software developer had filed necessary paperwork.
McAfee isn’t the first person to run for office on a platform of privacy. It’s been a key part of the agenda of the so-called Pirates Party that has sprung up in various countries in Europe over the last 10 years. However, even in Europe, the agenda has been too narrow to command anything more than fringe support.
McAfee announced his bid to be leader of the free world and Commander-in-Chief of the world’s largest armed forces barely a month after being arrested in Henderson County, Tennessee, for drunk driving and possession of a handgun while intoxicated.
