- The Washington Times - Friday, October 9, 2020

John Lydon, the rock singer who found infamy fronting the Sex Pistols during the iconic punk band’s heyday, is “of course” voting to reelect President Trump, he said in an interview Thursday.

The vocalist previously known professionally as Johnny Rotten told BBC’s NewsDay he is “definitely” voting Republican in next month’s contest between Mr. Trump and Democratic rival Joseph R. Biden.

“He’s an individual thinker, I’ll give him that for a start. He’s not the most lovable fellow on God’s earth, but I cannot see the opposition as offering me anything by way of a solution,” he said.

“Yes, of course I’m voting for Trump,” Mr. Lydon affirmed later in the interview. “It’s bad person or not. I don’t want a politician running this world anymore.”

Mr. Lydon, 64, led the Sex Pistols in the late 1970s when the British punk group made waves because of its songs like “Anarchy in the U.K.” and the anti-authoritarian anthem “God Save the Queen.”

He later formed the group Public Image Ltd., which he still fronts, although he told NewsDay the coronavirus pandemic is having a “crippling” effect on the band and music industry as a whole.

Mr. Lydon’s remark about casting a ballot to reelect the president clashes quite considerably with his earlier comments. “Don’t you dare vote Donald Trump,” he said during a TV appearance in 2015.

The legendary punk singer was later photographed in 2018 wearing a shirt containing Mr. Trump’s campaign slogan, “Make America Great Again,” and that image was widely circulated online last month.

Born in London, Mr. Lydon became a U.S. citizen in 2013.

• Andrew Blake can be reached at ablake@washingtontimes.com.

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