Mark Charles | |
|---|---|
 Charles in 2019 | |
| Born | Gallup, New Mexico, U.S. |
| Education | University of California, Los Angeles |
| Political party | Independent |
| Website | Official website |
Mark R. Charles is aNative American activist, public speaker, consultant, and author[1] on Native American issues, as well as a journalist, blogger,Reformed pastor, andcomputer programmer.[2][3] He was anindependent candidate forPresident of the United States in the2020 United States presidential election.[4]
Charles, the son of aNavajo father and aDutch-American mother, grew up inGallup, New Mexico.[3][5] He is a graduate ofUniversity of California, Los Angeles (UCLA).[3]
As an activist, Charles is known for denouncing thedoctrine of discovery and for his opposition to theDakota Access Pipeline.[6][7][8][9]
Charles is a former pastor at the Christian Indian Center inDenver, Colorado.[5] He is a consultant for theCalvin Institute of Christian Worship, as well as theWashington, D.C., correspondent forNative News Online.[10] Since 2008, he has written theblogWirelesshogan: Reflections from the Hogan.[4][10]
On May 28 2019, Charles announced via aYouTube video that he was running forPresident of the United States as an independent in the2020 election.[4][5][11] On August 20, he spoke at the Frank LaMere Native American Presidential Forum, alongside major candidates includingBernie Sanders,Elizabeth Warren, andKamala Harris.[12]
On July 25, 2020, Charles announced his choice of former Green Party Presidential candidate Sedinam Moyowasifza-Curry as his running mate.[13] Less than three weeks later, On August 14, his campaign released a statement saying that Sedinam Moyowasifza-Curry had been dropped as Charles' running mate.[14] On August 26, Charles announced that Adrian Wallace, Vice President of the LexingtonNAACP and Chairman of the Kentucky State Conference of the NAACP, had been chosen as his running mate.[15]
Charles hadballot access inColorado[16] withwrite-in access in several states. He received a total of 3,098 reported votes in the 2020 election, including 2,011 votes from ballot access and 1,087 reported votes from write-in access.[17]
Charles is a Christian. He was a pastor for aChristian Reformed Church for two years.[18][2]