Biden takes over POTUS Twitter account, inheriting blank slate from Trump Rachel Lerman, The Washington Post Jan. 20, 2021 FacebookTwitterEmail The sun sets over the West Wing at the White House on Thursday, Jan 7, 2021 in Washington.Washington Post photo by Jabin Botsford SAN FRANCISCO - Joe Biden became @POTUS on Twitter slightly before noon on Wednesday. But unlike four years ago, when President Donald Trump took over the handle, Biden has not kept the account's current followers. The account he took over Wednesday midday started with more than 955,000 followers, those who had followed his transition account @PresElectBiden in the last week. Trump's POTUS account became @POTUS45 at the same time. The previous followers of the POTUS account will get a notification about the transfer with the option to follow Biden's POTUS account if they wish.