The transition of the @POTUS Twitter account from Donald Trump to Joe Biden next month will be complicated, but not as ruthless as some reports indicated on Tuesday. Yes, Biden will inherit new versions of the @POTUS and @WhiteHouse accounts with zero followers, but users who followed those accounts under President Trump will be sent a notification, asking if they’d like to follow Biden’s accounts moving forward.
A Twitter spokesperson outlined what will happen on Jan. 20 in a statement.
“The accounts will not automatically retain their existing followers. Instead, Twitter will notify followers of these accounts to provide context that the content will be archived and allow them the choice to follow the Biden administration’s new accounts,” the statement read.