| Mark Charles | |
| Birth Place: | Gallup, New Mexico, U.S. |
| Education: | University of California, Los Angeles |
| Party: | Independent |
Mark R. Charles is a Native American activist, public speaker, consultant, and author[1] on Native American issues, as well as a journalist, blogger, Reformed pastor, and computer programmer.[2] He was an independent candidate for President of the United States in the 2020 United States presidential election.[3]
Charles, the son of a Navajo father and a Dutch-American mother, grew up in Gallup, New Mexico.[2] [4] He is a graduate of University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA).[2]
As an activist, Charles is known for denouncing the doctrine of discovery and for his opposition to the Dakota Access Pipeline.[5] [6] [7] [8]
Charles is a former pastor at the Christian Indian Center in Denver, Colorado.[4] He is a consultant for the Calvin Institute of Christian Worship, as well as the Washington, D.C., correspondent for Native News Online.[9] Since 2008, he has written the blog Wirelesshogan: Reflections from the Hogan.[3] [9]
On May 28 2019, Charles announced via a YouTube video that he was running for President of the United States as an independent in the 2020 election.[3] On August 20, he spoke at the Frank LaMere Native American Presidential Forum, alongside major candidates including Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren, and Kamala Harris.[10]
On July 25, 2020, Charles announced his choice of former Green Party Presidential candidate Sedinam Moyowasifza-Curry as his running mate.[11] 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.[12] On August 26, Charles announced that Adrian Wallace, Vice President of the Lexington NAACP and Chairman of the Kentucky State Conference of the NAACP, had been chosen as his running mate.[13]
Charles had ballot access in Colorado[14] with write-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.[15]
Charles is a Christian. He was a pastor for a Christian Reformed Church for two years.[16] [17]