(Photo via Facebook/Alex Stovall for Congress)
“My name is Alex Stovall. I am Republican. I am 26. I am a Chaplain,” tweeted a 24-year-old chaplain candidate in the US Army Reserve in late May, announcing his campaign for a congressional seat in Arizona’s 9th District. Stovall went on to proclaim himself an America Firster who is “running for Congress to take on AOC,” apparently referring to US Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a progressive New York Democrat.
But Stovall’s self-declared chaplaincy credentials have resulted in an investigation by the US Army Reserve Command into whether his social posts and other activity violated Defense Department regulations on how military personnel can present themselves in running for office.