Face of January 6 riots 'QAnon Shaman' to run for Arizona governor as he no longer supports 'corrupt' Donald Trump
The 38-year-old has described the current Trump administration as "a corrupt disaster"
Jacob Chansley, the 'QAnon Shaman' who became the face of the January 6 Capitol riots, has turned against President Donald Trump as he revealed he will run for governor of Arizona.
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The 38-year-old, whose real name is Jacob Chansley, told CNN he no longer supports Trump, citing the president's refusal to release files linked to the disgraced Jeffrey Epstein as the final straw.
He also described the current administration as "a corrupt disaster".
Chansley became one of the most recognisable faces of the January 6 Capitol riots after being pictured among the rioters wearing red, white and blue face paint and a fur headdress with horns.
Chansley also carried a spear draped in an American flag and shouted into a bullhorn as he stormed the building.
He was sentenced to 41 months in prison for his role in the riots - the toughest sentence handed out in the prosecutions - but served just 27 months before being released early in 2023 for good behaviour.
Despite this conviction, Chansley was among more than 1,500 people pardoned by Trump on the president's first day back in office, alongside many others convicted over the Capitol attack.
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Now, Chansley said he has turned his back on Trump and will run for governor as an independent in his home state of Arizona in November.
He told The Times: "All warfare is based on deception and the American people have had war declared on them."
He added: "Since I'm one of the only people that seem to have their wits about them and understand what's actually going on in the world, it is up to me, as far as I'm concerned, to do something about these problems."
On the riots, Chansley, who now lives in Phoenix, said he does not regret his actions on that day and rejected the 'QAnon Shaman' label, claiming he carried a "Q sent me" sign only as a "meme".
QAnon is a conspiracy movement that claims a secret cabal of Satan-worshipping paedophiles controls institutions in government, business and the media, and that Trump was fighting against it.
The theory emerged in 2017 on the message board 4chan after posts by an anonymous user known as 'Q', who claimed to possess high-level US security clearance, and later spread through far-right and anti-vaccine movements.
Although Chansley has now distanced himself from QAnon, he previously attacked Trump in July, suggesting Epstein-related blackmail was influencing him.
Trump’s failure to release Epstein’s alleged client list has sparked anger among far-right supporters, with figures such as Nick Fuentes urging followers to burn their MAGA hats and Politico warning of a growing credibility crisis within Trump’s movement.