Former President Barack Obama has beaten his successor at his own game.
Twitter on Tuesday unveiled the top nine most retweeted tweets for 2017. Three of them — including the year’s second most retweeted post — came from the former commander-in-chief.
“No one is born hating another person because of the color of his skin or his background or his religion…” pic.twitter.com/InZ58zkoAm
— Barack Obama (@BarackObama) August 13, 2017
Thank you for everything. My last ask is the same as my first. I’m asking you to believe—not in my ability to create change, but in yours.
— President Obama (@POTUS44) January 11, 2017
It’s been the honor of my life to serve you. You made me a better leader and a better man.
— President Obama (@POTUS44) January 20, 2017
President Donald Trump, notorious for his frequent tweets that range from bizarre (“covfefe,” which has since been deleted) to racist (anti-Muslim videos) and sexist (his attacks on television host Mika Brzezinski), did not make the list.
The second most retweeted tweet of the year was Obama’s response to the violence in Charlottesville. At the time, it was the most “liked” tweet in history. To date, it has about 4.6 million likes. Twitter did not confirm if it is still the record holder.
In a series of three tweets (the first one being the most popular) the former POTUS quoted Nelson Mandela, who served as president of South Africa from 1994 to 1999. Mandela passed away in 2013. Along with the first tweet Obama included a picture of himself smiling at a group of diverse children.
According to media outlets, the photo was taken in 2011 while Obama was visiting a day care center in Maryland. Pete Souza, former White House photographer, reportedly captured the photo.
Obama has two Twitter handles that made the list. The first one is his active account, @BarackObama, and the second one is an archive of his tweets while he was president, @POTUS44. Obama’s personal handle has 97.6 million followers.
Trump’s personal twitter, @realDonaldTrump, has 44.1 million followers. Trump also tweets from @POTUS, the account passed from president to president, which has 21.4 million followers.
Incidentally, the year’s most retweeted tweet did not come from a politician or even a celebrity. It came from a hungry man who was using Twitter to receive a one-year supply of free chicken nuggets from Wendy’s.
HELP ME PLEASE. A MAN NEEDS HIS NUGGS pic.twitter.com/4SrfHmEMo3
— Carter Wilkerson (@carterjwm) April 6, 2017
