Sam Sloan
Sloan in 2014
Born
Samuel Howard Sloan

(1944-09-07) September 7, 1944 (age 79)
Richmond, Virginia, U.S.
Other namesMohammad Ismail Sloan
Alma materUniversity of California, Berkeley (dropped out)
Occupations
  • Chess player
  • businessman
Years active1959–present
OrganizationIshi Press
Known forWinning a case pro se before the United States Supreme Court
Political partyRepublican (since 2023)
Other political
affiliations		Democratic (2014–2023)
Libertarian (2002–2014)
Children3
Website

Samuel Howard Sloan (born September 7, 1944), also known as Mohammad Ismail Sloan, is an American chess player, businessman, perennial candidate and former broker-dealer. In 1978, he won a case pro se before the United States Supreme Court, becoming the last non-lawyer to argue a case in front of the court before it prohibited the practice in 2013.[1][2] He is also known for running many political campaigns in the state of New York and for President of the United States.[2]

In 2006, Sloan served a one-year term on the executive board of the United States Chess Federation.

Early life and education

Sloan was born in Richmond, Virginia, and graduated from high school in 1962.[2] He studied at the University of California, Berkeley, where he became president of the Sexual Freedom League branch before dropping out.[3][2] He also participated in the Anti-Vietnam War movement at that time.[4]

Sloan began studying chess at age 7.[2] In 1959, he was the youngest competitor in the National Capital Open Chess Tournament in Washington, D.C.[5] The United States Chess Federation's database reports that he has played in 152 chess tournaments since 1991 and that his highest FIDE rating was 2107 in 1997.[6] When he was young, he attended a series of lectures by Bobby Fischer at the Marshall Chess Club.[2]

Career

Starting in 1968, Sloan worked for two years in the over-the-counter trading department at the Wall Street investment banking firm Hayden, Stone & Co. In 1970, he established Samuel H. Sloan & Company, a registered broker-dealer primarily trading over-the-counter stocks and bonds.[citation needed] The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) brought civil actions against Sloan & Co. starting in 1971, alleging he had failed to maintain adequate books and records, and revoked his broker-dealer registration in 1975. After years of litigation, he prevailed in a case against the SEC at the U.S. Supreme Court in 1978, arguing his case pro se. He submitted a 175-page brief that The New Republic called a "singularly absurd and complicated document" with "far too many obfuscations and legal shenanigans".[2] The Supreme Court ruled unanimously that the "tacking" of 10-day summary suspension orders for an indefinite period was an abuse of the SEC's authority and a deprivation of due process. Sloan is the last non-lawyer to argue before the court, which prohibited that practice in 2013.[2][7][8][1]

In the 1980s, Sloan assumed control of Ishi Press, a digital and print-on-demand publishing company.[2]

Sloan spent four years in the United Arab Emirates writing a chess column and running a computer store.[2] In July 2006, he was elected to a one-year term on the executive board of the United States Chess Federation (USCF) after finishing in second place (the first-place finisher received a three-year term). In 2007, he ran for reelection to the board but was unsuccessful, finishing ninth out of 10 candidates.[citation needed] He subsequently sued two officers of the board.[9][10]

Political campaigns

Sloan shortly after his conversion to Islam
Sloan with fellow Chess Player Laura Markarian in Armenia, 1978

Sloan ran for the Libertarian nomination for governor of New York in 2010 against attorney Warren Redlich and former madam Kristin M. Davis. By his own admission, he was not popular in the party and did not expect to win.[11] He lost the nomination to Redlich in a two-way battle, 27 votes to 17, after Davis refused to show up at the convention.[citation needed]

In January 2012, Sloan announced his candidacy for the Libertarian Party's 2012 presidential nomination.[12][13] Gary Johnson won the nomination.

In November 2013, Sloan was on the ballot for the New York City mayoral election, as an independent on the War Veterans line; he received 166 votes (0.02%).[14][15]

In June 2014, Sloan ran for the Democratic nomination for New York's 15th congressional district against incumbent José E. Serrano. Serrano won, 91% to 9%. Later that summer, he attempted to submit petitions for the 2014 gubernatorial election, one for the Democratic primary (with Nenad Bach as his running mate) and another an "ambush" of the Libertarian Party line similar to the one he attempted in 2010 (with Tom Stevens as the running mate). Both petitions were ruled invalid.[16]

In 2016, Sloan paid $1,000 to enter the Democratic presidential primary in New Hampshire but was not nominated.[17] He was also a candidate in the 2016 Democratic primary for Congress in New York's 13th congressional district.[18][19] He received 197 votes (0.46%), placing 8th out of nine candidates. Adriano Espaillat won.[20]

Sloan briefly ran for president again in 2020 as a Democrat.[2] He later ran in the Democratic primary for New York's 14th US congressional district, one of several challengers to incumbent first-term Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, but lost with 2.2% of the vote.[21]

COMMITTEE TO ELECT SAM SLOAN
CandidateSam Sloan
AffiliationRepublican Party
Website
https://www.samhsloan.com/

Sloan is again running for president in the 2024 election,[22] this time as a Republican. He has qualified to appear only on the New Hampshire primary ballot.[23] Sloan received 7 votes in the New Hampshire Republican Primary.

Personal life

Sloan has married five women.[2] In 1976, he converted to Islam and changed his name to Mohammad Ismail Sloan, though he continued to also use the name Sam Sloan.[2] In 1986, he was accused of kidnapping his daughter.[2][24] He was convicted of attempted kidnapping in 1992 and served 18 months in a Virginia prison.[9] In 1978, Sloan traveled to Armenia in the Soviet Union, where he met Girls Chess Champion Laura Markarian. He later expressed his desire to marry her and take her to America with him, although she was only 17 years old at the time.[2]

References

  1. ^ a b Gresko, Jessica (July 1, 2013). "Only lawyers now can argue before Supreme Court". Yahoo! News. Retrieved June 20, 2016.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o Hallman, J. C. (2020-06-11). "When Mr. Sloan Went to Washington". The New Republic. ISSN 0028-6583. Archived from the original on July 15, 2020. Retrieved 2020-09-11.
  3. ^ Pitcher, Michelle (February 13, 2015). "A brief history of sexual liberation, orgies at UC Berkeley". The Daily Californian. Retrieved June 20, 2016.
  4. ^ "The story of a photo: From Soviet café "Poplavok" to an Afghan prison". mediamax.am. Retrieved 2024-02-17.
  5. ^ Irving, Carl (June 15, 1959). "Lone Woman, 54 Men Vie in Chess". The Evening Post.
  6. ^ "US Chess MSA - Member Details (Tournament History): Sam Sloan". United States Chess Federation. Retrieved 2020-11-30.
  7. ^ "SEC v. Samuel H. Sloan 436 U.S. 103 (1978)". findlaw.com. Retrieved June 1, 2010.
  8. ^ Mauro, Tony (October 11, 2002). "Building a Better Advocate". The American Lawyer. Archived from the original on August 20, 2016. Retrieved June 1, 2007.
  9. ^ a b McClain, Dylan Loeb (8 October 2007). "Chess Group Officials Accused of Using Internet to Hurt Rivals". The New York Times. Retrieved 27 November 2020.
  10. ^ McClain, Dylan Loeb (January 23, 2010). "Settlement in Dispute That Riveted the Chess World". The New York Times. Retrieved 2020-11-28.
  11. ^ Karlin, Rick (April 23, 2010). "Tomorrow: Three-way Libertarian smack-down in Albany!". Albany Times Union. Archived from the original on April 26, 2010. Retrieved April 23, 2010.
  12. ^ "Sam Sloan Announces For Libertarian Party Presidential Nomination". Independent Political Report. January 16, 2012. Retrieved January 26, 2012.
  13. ^ "Principal Campaign Committee:Committee to Elect Sam Sloan". Federal Election Commission (FEC). January 2012. Retrieved January 26, 2012.
  14. ^ "Statement and Return Report for Certification - General Election - November 5, 2013" (PDF). New York City Board of Elections. Retrieved January 2, 2014.
  15. ^ "2013 NYC Voter Guide: Mayor". New York City Campaign Finance Board. 2013. Retrieved 2020-11-28.
  16. ^ "Candidate Petition List (PDF)". elections.ny.gov. Archived from the original on 2014-11-17. Retrieved September 26, 2014.
  17. ^ Weigel, David (January 25, 2016). "The existential pleasures of the Lesser Known Candidates presidential debate". The Washington Post. Retrieved 2020-11-28.
  18. ^ "2016 New York Elections, Primary, Candidates, Races and Voting". uselections.com. Retrieved June 20, 2016.
  19. ^ Rocchio, Patrick (June 17, 2016). "13th Congressional district primary June 28". Bronx Times-Reporter. Retrieved June 20, 2016.
  20. ^ "NYS Board of Elections Unofficial Election Night Results". New York State Board of Elections. June 29, 2016. Archived from the original on November 7, 2013. Retrieved June 29, 2016.
  21. ^ "Sam Sloan". Ballotpedia. Retrieved 20 May 2020.
  22. ^ Leonard, Collin (2022-12-01). "The strangest 2024 presidential candidates you've never heard of". Deseret News. Retrieved 2024-01-09.
  23. ^ "New Hampshire Secretary of State - Candidates" (PDF).
  24. ^ ""Kidnapped" US girl held in Bangkok". The Nation nationmultimedia.com. September 12, 1990. Archived from the original on 2001-02-15. Retrieved 2020-11-28.

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