Donald Trump's presence on social media attracted attention worldwide since he joined Twitter in 2009, with the handle @realDonaldTrump having over 88.9 million followers by 2021. He frequently tweeted during the 2016 election campaign and as president, until his ban in the final days of his term. Over twelve years (from the creation of his account in May 2009 until his permanent ban in January 2021), Trump tweeted around 57,000 times, including more than 25,000 times during his presidency. A spokesman for Trump said that Trump's tweets were considered "official statements made by the President of the United States."