Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachev, March 2, 1931 (Privolnoye, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union) -
VP candidate for Independent (2016)
Running mate with nominee: Ronald Wilson Reagan (Spirit) (physical body: 1911-2004 / spirit form, 2004- )
Popular vote: ? (0.00%)
Electoral vote: 0/538
The campaign:
In an election crowded with unusual candidates, one of the more intriguing figures in the 2016 race was "Mr. Ronald Reagan's Ghost," who actually filed with the FEC as an Independent based in Rochester, Minn. It wasn't the first time Reagan for office after his death in 2004. The Zombie Ronald Reagan was the VP in Cobra Commander's 2008 Presidential campaign.
Other spirit candidates on national tickets have included: George Washington as VP for Ellen Linea Wahlquist Jensen (1952, Washington Peace Party), Jesus as VP for Billy Joe Clegg (1972, Loyal USA Party) and as VP for Basil Tellou (1988, Independent) and yet again as VP for Mrs. Betty Bowers, America's Best Christian (2008, Independent), Richard Milhous Nixon as VP for Betty White (2012, Independent), and the double spirit team consisting of the reincarnations of Abraham Lincoln and George Brinton McClellan (2012, Mythical Majestic Midgardian Party).
The Reagan Ghost campaign mostly consisted of a few Facebook posts in 2015, but they did contain some valuable nuggets of information. Some samples--
Aug. 21, 2015
I'm back Buckeroos! I, Ronald Reagan's Ghost am running for President of The United States again in 2016!!! Since I am a ghost, I will be able to work 24 hours per day, 7 days per week because ghosts do not require sleep. It's been awhile since I was President. My positions on various issues have changed since I was previously on Earth. In the afterlife, I've been able to consult with various people, including Jesus, Ghandi and Jimi Hendricks. My views on many things have changed during these years in the afterlife. I will come out with my Presidential platform in the coming weeks.
Aug. 21, 2015
Over the next 444 days until the 2016 election, I plan on outlining my positions on various issues. Here is my first official position statement:
1) I am against the man-bun hairstyle. Under my reign as Supreme Leader, uh, I mean President; any man wearing his hair in a bun will be forced to live in a tent-city outside of the Governor's Mansion in Wisconsin. While living there, they can freely play hacky-sack, juggle, play bongos and basically annoy Wisconsin's douche-baggy Governor Scott Walker.
Aug. 24, 2015
Here is my official Federal Elections Commission filing for President again. I'm candidate 583.
It was a busy weekend for me. I met up with Jesus for drinks and to talk political strategy. Thus far, he's sort of taken it upon himself to act as my Political Consultant in the after-life. I could use someone down on the ground though as Jesus is not ready to return yet. PS... Jesus wanted me to tell you that he is not a fan of the GOP. I'll be running my campaign on sort of "What Would Jesus Do" platform. He has run some great ideas by me as we hit up some popular watering holes in Heaven.
He's not a big fan of churches and cults getting tax-exempt status in the US. Therefore, when I am President, churches/cults will have tax-exempt status revoked. That money will be used to set up or fully fund existing non-profit organizations to help needy people ...
Aug. 25, 2015
I've met the mother of Donald Trump in the afterlife. She is, in fact an orange orangutang. She says Donald is acting like an ape.
On Aug. 24, 2015 the campaign Facebook account ran a graphic that simply declared "Reagan/Gorbachev," strongly implying that the former Soviet leader was the running-mate. Or at least that's my inference and I'm running with it since the possibility of this ticket is too good not to cover and makes a good story. At the time Mr. Ronald Reagan's Ghost was running for President, Gorbachev was basically in the political wilderness of Putin's Russia.
The Reagan/Gorbachev electioneering appeared to be a rather short-lived effort. No votes were reported for the ticket on Election Day. Naturally there would have been a number of Constitutional hurdles they would have had to overcome in the event of their victory such as term limits, citizenship, and the fact the nominee was deceased.
Election history:
1969-1970 - Deputy, Verkhovnyy Sovet Soyuza Sovetskikh Sotsialisticheskikh Respublik (Kommunisticheskaya partiya Sovetskovo Soyuza)
1989-1990 - Chairman of the Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Union (Kommunisticheskaya partiya Sovetskovo Soyuza)
1990-1991 - Prezident Sovetskogo Soyuza (Kommunisticheskaya partiya Sovetskovo Soyuza)
1996 - President of Russia (Independent) - defeated
Other occupations: combine operator, attorney, First Party Secretary of the Stavropol Regional Committee, First Secretary of the Stavropol City Party Organization, Second Secretary of the Stavropol Kraikom, First Secretary of the Stavropol kraikom, Secretary of the Central Committee, member of Politbyuro TsK KPSS, General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, Chairman of the Presidum of the Supreme Soviet, author, lecturer,
Notes:
Became a full member of the Communist Party in 1952.
