Whistleblower Chelsea Manning to run for Senate

Chelsea Manning, who was jailed for leaking secret government documents, intends to run for Senate, according to a released document.

MENA

1 min read

The New Arab & agencies

14 January, 2018

Manning was released last year after a presidential pardon [Getty]

Whistleblower Chelsea Manning will run for US Senate in the state of Maryland, a document seen on Saturday said.

Manning was jailed in 2010 for releasing top secret files but now appears to be seeking a political career, AFP reported.

The Federal Election Commission document, filed Thursday, lists Chelsea Elizabeth Manning of North Bethesda, Maryland, as a Democratic candidate for the Senate.

A former army intelligence analyst, Manning was sentenced to 35 years in prison in 2013 for leaking more than 700,000 classified documents.

Most related to the Iraq and Afghanistan wars and proved highly embarrassing for the US military when they were released by WikiLeaks.

She was given a presidential pardon by Barack Obama in 2017.

Following her release, Harvard University offered Manning a Kennedy School visiting fellowship, leading to a backlash from the intelligence and defence communities.

US President Donald Trump has harshly criticised Manning and said she should not have been released from jail.