Keith Russell Judd
Born (1958-05-23) May 23, 1958 (age 65)
Pasadena, California, U.S.
OccupationPerennial candidate
Criminal statusSupervised release
Criminal chargeThreatened extortion
Penalty210 months in federal prison

Keith Russell Judd (born May 23, 1958) is an American convicted criminal and perennial candidate for political office. His nicknames include "Dark Priest"[1] and "Mtr. President".[2] He claims to have run for president of the United States in every election since 1996. In the 2012 Democratic primary in West Virginia, Judd won 41% of the vote against incumbent Barack Obama, then the highest single-state vote share that any of Obama's primary opponents had achieved in 2012.

Early life

Judd was born May 23, 1958, in Pasadena, California. He is married, and professes to be a Rasta-Christian.[2] He claims to have run in every United States presidential election since 1996 and for mayor of Albuquerque, New Mexico, and Governor of New Mexico.[2] He further claims to be a former member of the Federation of Super Heroes.[2] Judd has one child, born on September 3, 1990, a son named Marcus Miciah Robertson.[1]

Crime

In 1999 Judd was convicted of two counts of "mailing a threatening communication with intent to extort money or something of value"[3] and sentenced to 210 months (17½ years) in federal prison. The conviction has been falsely connected to litigation involving the University of New Mexico[4] which was a civil rights complaint he initiated.[5] His actual crime involved postcards that stated "Send the money back now, Keith Judd, Last Chance or Dead." and a package containing a semen stained Playboy, a knife inside the magazine, a key chain, and his father's military discharge papers. He also sent letters to jurors after his trial.[6] He has appealed his conviction no fewer than 36 times, but each appeal has been dismissed for various reasons.[7]

Judd was released in June 2013 on a supervised release program. In October, his probation office sought a warrant for his arrest for violating the terms of his supervision. He was sentenced to 12 months in prison, with another 24 months of supervised release. He has since been released a second time under supervision.[8][9]

Presidential candidacies

As a perennial candidate, Judd has thrice run for president in the Democratic Party's primaries, in 2008, 2012 and 2016. Each time Judd has managed to qualify to be included on the ballot of at least one Democratic Party primary or caucus.

2008 Democratic presidential primary campaign

In the 2008 presidential election he filed to run as a Democrat in 14 states but only appeared on the ballot in Idaho.[4][10][11]

Judd finished third in the May 27, 2008, non-binding Idaho Democratic presidential preference primary with 1.7 percent of the vote, behind Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton.[12] No delegates to the Democratic National Convention were at stake in the primary as Idaho's delegation was determined at the February 5 Democratic caucus, which Judd unsuccessfully contested.[13]

Below is a table of Judd's performance in the primaries.

Primary results
Date Contest Votes Place Percent Delegates Source(s)
February 5 Idaho caucus 0 4th of 4 0.00 0 The Green Papers
Total 0 0.00 0

2012 Democratic presidential primary campaign

Map of second-place candidates in the 2012 Democratic presidential primaries
Legend:
  Keith Russell Judd
  Ron Paul
  Darcy Richardson
  John Wolfe Jr.
  Randall Terry
  Uncommitted/other
  No second-place finisher
  No primary held/ no info available

Judd filed to run for president again in the 2012 general election.[14][15] Running again for the Democratic nomination, Judd only qualified for ballot status in the West Virginia primary.[16][17] On May 8, 2012, Judd won 41% of the vote against incumbent Barack Obama, a higher percentage of the vote in one state than any other primary opponent of Obama had hitherto achieved in 2012 (a figure later surpassed by John Wolfe, Jr.'s showing in the Arkansas primary).[18][19] While this showing would normally have entitled Judd to delegates at the 2012 Democratic National Convention, state officials expressed some uncertainty as to whether Judd had completed the required formalities, such as filing a slate of delegates and completing paperwork.[20] Judd, who did not qualify for any other primary ballots, contested the ballot count, alleging that ballot workers suppressed the actual total (which he said showed him in the lead) in an effort to cover up an Obama loss.[21]

Below is a table of Judd's performance in the primaries.

Primary results
Date Contest Votes Place Percent Delegates Source(s)
March 1 West Virginia primary 73,137 2nd of 2 40.65 0 The Green Papers
Total 73,137 3rd 0.89 0

2016 Democratic presidential primary campaign

Map showing Judd's ballot access in the 2016 Democratic Primaries
  On ballot
  Not on ballot

Judd sent a handwritten note to the FEC announcing his 2016 presidential candidacy as a Democrat on August 16, 2014.[22] He filed his official documents with the FEC in September 2015.[23] As of January 1, 2016, Judd had been officially added to the ballot in the Louisiana, Missouri, New Hampshire, Oklahoma, and Texas Democratic Primaries.[citation needed] On January 12, 2016, Judd's paperwork was filed to be on the primary ballot in West Virginia.[24]

Below is a table of the primaries Judd competed in, and his performance in them.

Primary results
Date Contest Votes Place Percent Delegates Source(s)
Feb 9 New Hampshire primary 44 12th of 28 0.02 0 The Green Papers
March 1 Texas primary 2,569 6th of 8 0.18 0 The Green Papers
Oklahoma primary 4,386 4th of 7 1.31 0 The Green Papers
March 5 Louisiana primary 1,357 7th of 10 0.44 0 The Green Papers
March 15 Missouri primary 288 8th of 9 0.05 0 The Green Papers
May 10 West Virginia primary 4,450 4th of 6 1.85 0 The Green Papers
June 7 California primary 5,506 6th of 7 0.16 0 The Green Papers
North Dakota caucus 0 0.00 0 The Green Papers
Total 20,305 7th 0.07 0 The Green Paper

References

  1. ^ a b Dana Milbank, Richard Mourdock and Keith Judd vs. Washington, The Washington Post, May 11, 2012.
  2. ^ a b c d "Keith Judd's Biography". Vote Smart. Retrieved 2021-08-02.
  3. ^ Texas Prisoner Keith Russell Judd Gets His Name Listed On Idaho Democratic Primary Ballot With Obama, Clinton
  4. ^ a b "Texas inmate cons way onto Idaho ballot". USA Today. April 16, 2008. Retrieved April 6, 2012.
  5. ^ Judd v. University of New Mexico, 52 F.3d 337 (10th Cir April 17, 1995).
  6. ^ "United States v. Judd, - CourtListener.com". CourtListener. Retrieved 2015-12-29.
  7. ^ 99-2008a -- Judd v. University of New Mexico -- 29 February 2000
  8. ^ U.S. v. Keith Russell Judd (Fifth Circuit November 4, 2014), Text.
  9. ^ Raby, John. "After 2012 stunner, ex-con makes another White House run". AP News. Retrieved 2021-05-27.
  10. ^ "A Con For America". Boise Weekly. April 9, 2008. Retrieved April 6, 2012.
  11. ^ Winger, Richard (April 17, 2008). "Third Choice on Idaho Democratic Presidential Primary is a Prisoner". Ballot Access News. Retrieved April 6, 2012.
  12. ^ May 27, 2008 Primary Election Results Archived April 16, 2009, at the Wayback Machine
  13. ^ Hoffman, Nathaniel (June 18, 2008). "Inmate candidate sues Dems". Boise Weekly. Retrieved April 6, 2012.
  14. ^ "Keith Russell Judd: Would-be Presidential candidate sits in a Beaumont prison". Beaumont Enterprise. July 6, 2011. Archived from the original on March 3, 2012. Retrieved April 6, 2012.
  15. ^ Asbury, Kyla (July 6, 2011). "Texas prisoner says he should be on 2012 ballot". West Virginia Record. Retrieved April 6, 2012.
  16. ^ Porterfield, Mannix (March 27, 2012). "Texas convict on W.Va. ballot for president". The Register-Herald. Retrieved April 6, 2012.
  17. ^ "Hail to the chief! Beaumont "resident" on the ballot in West Virginia". Beaumont Enterprise. March 27, 2012. Archived from the original on May 12, 2012. Retrieved April 6, 2012.
  18. ^ Weigel, David (May 8, 2012). "Meet Keith Judd, the Superhero Inmate Winning Delegates Against Barack Obama". Slate. Retrieved May 9, 2012.
  19. ^ Little, M. (May 9, 2012). "Texas inmate wins 41% of vote vs. Obama in West Virginia primary". LA Times. Retrieved May 9, 2012.
  20. ^ Messina, Lawrence (May 8, 2012). "Keith Judd, Texas Inmate, Gets 40 Percent Of Votes Against Obama In West Virginia Democratic Primary". The Huffington Post. Retrieved May 9, 2012.
  21. ^ Kabler, Phil (May 28, 2012). Statehouse Beat, May 27, 2011: Judd claims he won. Charleston Gazette-Mail. Retrieved May 28, 2012.
  22. ^ "Keith Russell Judd Miscellaneous Report to FEC" (PDF). FEC. August 16, 2014. Retrieved October 20, 2015.
  23. ^ "Keith Judd FEC filing" (PDF). FEC. May 23, 2015. Retrieved October 20, 2015.
  24. ^ "WV SOS - Elections - Candidate - Online Data Services". apps.sos.wv.gov. Retrieved 2016-01-20.

External links

(← 2004) 2008 United States presidential election (2012 →)
(← 2008) 2012 United States presidential election (2016 →)
(← 2012) 2016 United States presidential election (2020 →)
Categories