In early 2019, an anonymous edit surfaced showing Donald Trump with his head shrunk down to a small lumpy shape, producing what /pol/ users started calling Potato Trump. The image spread on 4chan during the 2020 Democratic primary run-up, mostly shared by posters backing Andrew Yang over the sitting president[3]. It became a persistent Yang Gang shitpost and one of the odder anti-Trump edits to come out of that election cycle.
Origin
The exact creator of the Potato Trump edit is not documented[3]. The earliest known posting of the image came on January 8, 2019, when the Twitter account @BigFitGroyper attached it to a message about Senator Lindsey Graham and Israel[3]. The image had limited visibility until users on 4chan's /pol/ board[2] picked it up two months later, during the run-up to the 2020 Democratic primary.
- Platform: Twitter (initial post) / 4chan (viral spread)
- Creator: Unknown
- Date: 2019
Overview
The Potato Trump image works by shrinking Trump's head to a tiny, oddly-shaped lump on top of his suit, keeping enough of his face visible that viewers still recognize him but making the composition look deliberately amateurish[3]. That ugly, obviously-fake quality is the joke; Yang Gang posters treated the edit like a bad-on-purpose reaction pic aimed at then-President Trump. Threads pairing the image with pro-Yang text or absurdist political captions turned it into a running /pol/ inside joke through spring 2019, tied to the wider Yang Gang meme push that helped Andrew Yang draw attention during his Democratic primary campaign[1].
How to Use
Users typically start with the low-resolution photoshopped image of Trump's shrunken head and post it on 4chan or Twitter with captions mocking Trump or promoting Andrew Yang[3]. Common convention pairs the image with absurdist political text rather than sharp commentary, keeping the joke rooted in how bad the edit looks.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Potato Trump?
Potato Trump is a low-resolution photoshopped image of Donald Trump with his head shrunk down to a small lumpy shape, popular on 4chan's /pol/ board during the 2020 US election cycle[3].
Where did Potato Trump come from?
The earliest known posting of the image came from the Twitter account @BigFitGroyper on January 8, 2019, before the image spread to /pol/ in March 2019[3].
What does Potato Trump mean?
The image was used mainly by Yang Gang posters on 4chan to mock Donald Trump while backing Andrew Yang's 2020 Democratic primary run[1].
How do you use Potato Trump?
People typically post the shrunken-head Trump image on 4chan or Twitter with pro-Yang or absurdist political captions[3].
Is Potato Trump still popular?
Activity around the image dropped off after the 2020 primary, and it now reads as a historical Yang Gang footnote tied to 4chan's /pol/ board[2].
