When choosing their president in November, Americans will likely have incumbent Democrat Joe Biden and Republican Donald Trump as the two main candidates. But could they also vote for “Literally Anybody Else?”
A 35-year-old school math teacher in the southern US state of Texas has officially changed his name to Literally Anybody Else and is collecting signatures to run as an independent candidate in the November presidential election.
“My name is Literally Anybody Else and I’m running for president of the United States,” he recently told the WFAA network in Dallas.
Through this action, Else, who used to be called Dustin Ebey, is protesting the American electoral system, in which only members of the Republican and Democratic parties have been elected president for the past 150 years.
“We don’t have an outlet to say ‘We’re done, we’re tired, we need something fresh,'” Else, who is an army veteran, said in the interview. “Out of 300 million people we can do better.”
Even though independent candidates can appear on the US presidential ballot, the political system heavily favors a two-party race.
“People are voting for the lesser of two evils, not someone they actually believe in or support,” Else said. “People should have the option to vote for someone who resembles and represents them, not the lesser of two evils. I reject that.”
The candidate is already out campaigning in a T-shirt that says “Literally Anybody Else 2024.” He needs some 113,000 signatures from supporters who didn’t vote in the presidential primary contests in Texas to be listed on the ballot in the state.
Barring a surprise, the November 5 election will see a rematch between Biden and Trump in what opinion polls show will be a tight race.
Getting on the ballot in Texas and potentially other states would be a monumental undertaking.
“I’m not delusional. This will be very hard to do, but it’s not impossible,” Else said of his chances of ending up on the ballot. “My hope is to have Donald Trump, Joe Biden, and then Literally Anybody Else right underneath.”