Content creator Trisha Paytas considers 2026 congressional bid

article

NEW YORK, NEW YORK - FEBRUARY 3: Trisha Paytas poses at The Entertainment Community Fund Opening Night of "Trisha Paytas' Big Broadway Dream" on Broadway at The St. James Theater on February 3, 2025 in New York City. (Photo by Bruce Glikas/Getty Imag

Expand

WESTLAKE VILLAGE, CALIF. - YouTuber, influencer and all-around internet personality Trisha Paytas says they're considering a 2026 congressional bid. 

In one of their latest YouTube videos titled "2026 MANIFESTATIONS," Paytas said that they would "love to run" for the U.S. House of Representatives. Then, in a TikTok video uploaded shortly afterward, Paytas said they were "currently Googling" the process of running for office. 

"The idea of me being [a] representative for the state of California came to me in a dream — in a vision, if you will," they said in the TikTok. "It's so vivid to me."

"I never thought of myself as a political person until I started having kids and realizing, like, the world could be just so disastrous [and] dystopian for real by the time they get to be adults," they went on. "I was like, ‘Alright Trish, enough just, like, shutting it out, being ignorant.'"

They also detailed some of their campaign platforms in the video, saying their "main goal" would be to raise the age requirement for working in the adult entertainment industry. Paytas themselves is an OnlyFans creator, a subscription-based content creation platform known for its adult creators. 

Their campaign slogan? "California could be good."

If they do decide to run, Paytas will need to complete several pieces of paperwork in order to formally get their name on the 2026 ballot, according to the California Secretary of State. Then, they'll have to either collect 1,740 signatures or pay a filing fee of $1,740. They could also choose to run as a write-in candidate in the primary. 

An internet veteran 

The backstory:

Paytas has been in the public eye since 2007, according to Business Insider.

They're known for their Mukbangs, which are videos where a person eats a large amount of food, and their "extremely personal vlogs from their kitchen floor," as Business Insider also notes. 

They're also known for getting into "more public feuds than maybe any other influencer." They've squabbled with the likes of their former podcast co-host Ethan Klein and TikToker Charli D'Amelio. 

They're sort of known as a professional troll, which, according to Urban Dictionary, is "one who posts deliberately provocative messages…with the intention of causing maximum disruption and argument." 

They came out as non-binary in 2021. 

What's next:

Paytas recently completed a run on Broadway in "Beetlejuice." They'll also appear in the upcoming third-season of "Euphoria," this spring. 

"I'm lucky, and I'm really thankful," Paytas told PEOPLE. "I've just been enjoying life."