Using pseudonyms, or even legally changing your name, to run for office, is not unheard-of. The classic case came from the 2015-2016, when a likely lad ran for the U.S. Presidency under the name “Deez Nuts”:
EXCLUSIVE
The candidate polling at 9 percent in North Carolina against Trump and Clinton isn’t a real person. But 15-year-old Brady Olson, who lives on a farm in Iowa and gamed the FEC filing system, certainly is.
Ben Collins & Emily Shire, “Presidential Sensation Deez Nuts Is a 15-Year-Old Iowa Farm Boy,” Daily Beast, August 19, 2015.
For years, a man named Jim Burns ran for office using his altered middle name, “Libertarian,” to help make his statement in lieu of the shifting ballot status of his party of choice.
But has anyone done it better than Dustin Ebey?
The 35-year-old Texan became a viral sensation this week after legally changing his name to Literally Anybody Else and declaring his candidacy for the White House. The goal, he told Reason on Thursday, is “giving a unified voice to the idea that we deserve better.”
Eric Boehm, “Meet ‘Literally Anybody Else,’ the Presidential Candidate That 2024 Demands,” Reason, April 5, 2024.
The case he makes on his website is not very radical, though:
The call to action is clear: stand up to Washington and reclaim the voice of the American people. We refuse to accept the status quo, where the interests of the privileged few outweigh the needs of the many. It’s time to disrupt the entrenched power structures and demand accountability from all of our elected officials on both sides.
Let this rallying cry echo across the nation: “The American people want literally anybody else.” It’s a declaration of our collective desire for change, for leadership that prioritizes integrity, self-awareness, and a commitment to the common good.
“A New Way of Thinking about Politics,” LiterallyAnybodyElse.com.