Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg: No Plans to Run For President

(AP)
By Cathy Burke
Billionaire Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg isn't planning to run for president, preferring to focus on business and philanthropy projects, BuzzFeed News reported Tuesday.

"No," he emailed the news outlet about a planned White House bid. "I’m focused on building our community at Facebook and working on the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative," a philanthropy effort he runs with his wife, Priscilla Chan.

The tech titan first fueled speculation when he proposed a company stock reclassification that would let him serve in government without losing his majority voting rights. 

Most recently, Vanity Fair reported a number of people in Silicon Valley think Zuckerberg is gearing up for a 2020 run.

But Zuckerberg is preparing for a political battle only as a private citizen, an unnamed source told BuzzFeed News.

"There is absolutely a possibility that Mark may choose to play a stronger role in the political system and political debates," the source told BuzzFeed.