Texas Army vet uses snark to legally change his name in long-shot run for the presidency

An Army veteran is stepping in to help voters who are fed up with the presidential choices facing them on the ballot in November.

With negative popularity numbers for both former President Donald Trump and incumbent President Joe Biden, some voters have expressed they are frustrated with the two presumptive Republican and Democrat nominees. Dustin Ebey, a schoolteacher in Texas, wants to help out.

The 7th-grade math teacher has launched a longshot presidential bid in protest, even going as far as legally changing his name and filing under the new moniker, “Literally Anybody Else.”

“This isn’t about me ‘Literally Anybody Else’ more so as it is an idea. We can do better out of 300 million people for president,” he told WFAA.

“I’m not delusional. This will be very hard to do, but it’s not impossible. My hope is to have Donald Trump, Joe Biden, and then Literally Anybody Else right underneath,” the would-be candidate said. “I really want there to be an outlet for folks like me who are just so fed up with this constant power grab between two parties that has no benefit for the common person.”

According to the local ABC affiliate, “Mr. Else has already filed with the Federal Election Commission. He was at the game stumping for signatures to try and land on Texas’ November ballot as an independent presidential candidate.”

The outlet also noted that “a Tarrant County judge signed off on the name change, though Mr. Else mentioned they weren’t amused.”

The 35-year-old is facing the daunting task of meeting the Texas requirement of garnering 113,151 signatures from registered voters who haven’t already voted in Democrat or Republican primaries in the state, according to WFAA.

“So, it will be doubtful that Else gets this accomplished in every territory voting for the next president. His best chance is to apply as a write-in candidate for the Lone Star State and others too,” the outlet reported. “In Texas, a write-in candidate only has to register with the state, but hordes of signatures aren’t needed for the secretary of state to accept their votes if a voter writes their name down in November.”

But he hopes voters unsatisfied with the current choices will respond to his rallying cry.

“People are voting for the lesser of two evils, not someone they actually believe in or support,” he said. “People should have the option to vote for someone who resembles and represents them, not the lesser of two evils. I reject that.”

“I would love to get up on the debate stage and bring some reality to what’s happening. I’m there because both of them aren’t enough,” he told WFAA.

“We have the responsibility to stand up for ourselves and say enough is enough. Let everyone know we’re not hopeless,” the man now known as ‘Else” said. “If you want to accomplish something no one ever has–you have to do something no one’s ever done.”

Frieda Powers

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