Activist Deray Mckesson is running for mayor of Baltimore

In yet another sign of social media’s growing impact on the world, one of the most well-known figures of the #BlackLivesMatter movement is running for political office. Deray Mckesson (@Deray) filed just ahead of tonight’s deadline to join Baltimore’s mayoral race. According to the Baltimore Sun, there are 28 people currently registered to run including 13 Democrats, with a deadline of Friday to withdraw from consideration. Former mayor Sheila Dixon is reportedly leading the crowded field, and it remains to be seen how far the combination of activism and significant Twitter/Instagram following can take a political outsider in the race.

The fog is intense in some parts of Baltimore tonight.

— deray mckesson (@deray) February 3, 2016

In the last couple of years, Mckesson has been active in protests against police brutality in both Ferguson, Mo and Baltimore. Since then he’s been a part of Campaign Zero, an organization focusing on ending violence by police, and has met with presidential candidates on the campaign trail. According to the Washington Post, he says he’s running for office to “usher Baltimore into a new era where our government is accountable to its people and aggressively innovative in how it identifies and solves problems.”

Source: Baltimore Sun, New York Times, Washington Post