Goodspaceguy
American perennial candidate
Goodspaceguy
Goodspaceguy in 2021
Born
Michael George Nelson

Minneapolis, Minnesota, U.S.
EducationUniversity of Maryland (BA)
University of Minnesota (MS)
Political partyDemocratic
Republican
Libertarian
"Trump Republican"
"Employmentwealth Party"
"Work and Wealth Party"

Michael George Goodspaceguy Nelson (born Michael George Nelson), known mononymously as Goodspaceguy, is an American perennial candidate from Washington state.[1]

Early life and education

Born Michael George Nelson in Minneapolis, Minnesota, Goodspaceguy received a B.A. from the University of Maryland and a M.S. from the University of Minnesota.[2] He legally added "Goodspaceguy" to his name in 2006, becoming Michael George Goodspaceguy Nelson.[3][4]

Career

Outside of politics, Goodspaceguy describes himself as "an amateur economist and astronomer."[5] In his 2010 campaign profile, he lists his previous occupations as "accountant, chemical plant operator, economist, [and] investor".[6]

By 2011, Goodspaceguy had sought public office 25 times,[7] including those of United States Senator and Governor of Washington. Though never endorsed by a party, he has contested elections as a Democrat, Republican, Trump Republican, Libertarian and as a candidate of the non-existent "Employmentwealth Party" (under Washington elections law, candidates can declare their preference for any party, regardless of whether it actually exists).[8]

In the 2014 race for Washington's 7th congressional district, Goodspaceguy identified himself with the "Work and Wealth Party."[9] His best electoral showing was in the 2003 race for King County Council district 8, in which he polled 16 percent of the vote against Dow Constantine.[3]

In addition to his frequent campaigns for local, state, and federal office, Goodspaceguy is a regular attendee of meetings of the Burien, Washington city council, during which he frequently participates in public comment sessions.[2][10] Goodspaceguy ran for the Port of Seattle Commission in the August 4, 2015 primary, and preliminary results showed Goodspaceguy finishing second in a field of three candidates, with about 24,000 votes, or just over 9% of the total votes cast.[11][12] He ultimately lost the general election to incumbent Courtney Gregoire, but garnered 48,000 votes (13% of the vote) in the process;[13][14] Goodspaceguy was also endorsed by the 34th District Republicans prior to the general election, one of only two given by the group for the election alongside a Tim Eyman initiative.[15] Goodspaceguy ran in the 2016 gubernatorial election in Washington,[16] winning 13,191 votes in the primary but not advancing.[17] Goodspaceguy was running for King County Executive in the 2017 election,[18] and filed again in 2021 to run for the same office.[19]

He again ran unsuccessfully in the 2018 United States Senate election in Washington, and for King County Council in 2019.[20] His 2019 run garnered 4.52% of the vote, in comparison to the 16% he managed in his 2003 run for the same office.[21]

He was a candidate for the 2020 gubernatorial election, stating his party preference as "Trump Republican",[22] winning 5,646 votes in the primary.[23] He ran in the 2024 United States Senate election as a Republican.[24]

Political positions

Goodspaceguy's political positions generally revolve around his support for space exploration and space colonization.[2] Goodspaceguy also calls for population control through a birth fee. He describes himself as "pro-choice on almost everything."[25] Goodspaceguy opposes the Washington state minimum wage as it "destroys jobs".[12][5]

See also

References

  1. ^ Berman, Steve (May 21, 2012). "New Federal Whistleblower Law Enhances National Security, Reduces Wasteful Spending". Seattle Post-Intelligencer. Retrieved May 13, 2014.
  2. ^ a b c Atkins, Drew (October 29, 2015). "Goodspaceguy: The definitive interview with King County's perennial candidate". Crosscut.com. Retrieved November 7, 2017.
  3. ^ a b Ervin, Keith (August 12, 2007). "Goodspaceguy Nelson challenges Constantine in race for District 8". Seattle Times. Retrieved May 13, 2014.
  4. ^ Holden, Dominic (June 20, 2013). "Ask Goodspaceguy! (Updated!)". The Stranger. Retrieved August 29, 2017.
  5. ^ a b Garnick, Coral (August 14, 2015). "Perennial candidate Goodspaceguy advances to November in Port race". The Seattle Times. Retrieved July 12, 2017.
  6. ^ "Election Center: Goodspaceguy". The Spokesman-Review. Retrieved August 10, 2020.
  7. ^ Holden, Dominic (July 8, 2011). "Goodspaceguy on the End of the Shuttle Program". The Stranger. Retrieved May 13, 2014.
  8. ^ "Top two primary FAQ". official website. Washington Secretary of State. Retrieved July 28, 2022.
  9. ^ Camden, Jim (March 13, 2014). "4th Congressional District filling up". The Spokesman-Review. Retrieved May 13, 2014.
  10. ^ Wendland, Matt (August 21, 2012). "Goodspaceguy Calls for Burien City Council to End "Job Killing Minimum Wage"". Burien Daily. Archived from the original on November 9, 2013. Retrieved May 13, 2014.
  11. ^ Results Detail: Port of Seattle Commissioner Position No. 2 KingCounty.gov elections results
  12. ^ a b Brownstone, Sydney (August 7, 2015). "Um, Can We Talk About How More Than 23,000 of You Voted for Goodspaceguy?". The Stranger. Retrieved November 1, 2015.
  13. ^ "Election Results - General and Special Election: November 3, 2015" (PDF). King County Elections. November 6, 2015. p. 8. Retrieved November 9, 2015.
  14. ^ Brownstone, Sydney (November 4, 2015). "Really? 31,000 Votes for Goodspaceguy?". The Stranger. Retrieved November 9, 2015.
  15. ^ Connelly, Joel (October 14, 2015). "34th District Republicans endorse Goodspaceguy for Seattle Port Commission". Seattle Post-Intelligencer. Retrieved November 9, 2015.
  16. ^ Mikkelson, Drew (May 19, 2016). "Bryant won't disclose choice for president". KING 5 News. Retrieved July 12, 2016.
  17. ^ "August 2, 2016 Primary Results: Governor". Washington Secretary of State. Retrieved July 12, 2017.
  18. ^ Brunner, Jim (May 19, 2017). "Open Seattle mayor's race draws a long list of candidates". The Seattle Times. Retrieved July 12, 2017.
  19. ^ Kunkler, Aaron (May 24, 2021). "Candidate roundup: Who's running this November?". Snoqualmie Valley Record. Retrieved June 15, 2021.
  20. ^ "August 7, 2018 Primary Results - U.S. Senator". Secretary of State of Washington. August 21, 2018. Retrieved May 16, 2020.
  21. ^ "Election Results" (PDF). King County. August 19, 2019. Retrieved May 16, 2020.
  22. ^ "Who has filed - King County". King County. May 15, 2020. Retrieved May 15, 2020.
  23. ^ "August 4, 2020 Primary Results - Governor". Washington Secretary of State. Retrieved October 17, 2020.
  24. ^ "Primary 2024 Candidate list". voter.votewa.gov. Retrieved July 20, 2024.
  25. ^ Voter's Pamphlet August 19, 2008 Primary. Olympia, Washington: Washington Secretary of State. 2008. p. 10. Retrieved July 26, 2016.
  • 2009 Interview with Goodspaceguy originally aired on KCTS-TV
  • Our Spaceship Earth—the blog of Goodspaceguy
  • Goodspaceguy at Ballotpedia
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