Earl Walker Jackson Sr. (born January 13, 1952) is an American conservative politician,[1] Protestant minister, and lawyer in Virginia who was a candidate in the 2024 Republican Party presidential primaries.

[2] Jackson unsuccessfully sought the Republican nomination for the United States Senate in Virginia in the 2012 and 2018 elections.

He is head pastor at Exodus Faith Ministries, located in Chesapeake, Virginia and founder of Staying True to America's National Destiny, a Christian political organization.

[3] Jackson was born on January 13, 1952, in Chester, Pennsylvania, and he is the great-grandson of slaves from Orange County, Virginia.

[10] While in Boston, Jackson became involved in extended legal battles with the Federal Communications Commission while serving as the general manager of a radio station.

[ambiguous] Later that year, he and his family moved to Chesapeake, Virginia, and began holding weekly Bible studies.

[6] The church rented a space in a storefront location, but was forced to move due to zoning regulations, an incident that helped to shape his concerns of "government overreach".

[22] After his nomination, Jackson received criticism for some of his past statements that have been perceived as derogatory to the LGBTQ community, non-Christians, and Democrats.

[24] He has been criticized for alleged Islamophobia in response to his comments about House Floor rule changes to accommodate members who wear headcoverings.

Jackson disputed a number of criticisms of his theology, which he had were "twisted and distorted," and said, "I'm not going to spend the campaign talking about these issues, so let's get it out of the way now.

[9] Jackson claimed that his comments about gay people have been taken out of context, and that they were directed not towards the general LGBT community but rather its "more politically active, fringe members."

Of past comments that homosexuality "poisons culture", he then claimed that "What I really said was that the gay rights movement, so called, the homosexual activists, engage in some behavior that is absolutely horrendous, and that's true, everybody knows that; from going into Catholic churches and desecrating the Sacraments to engaging in all kinds of demonstrative behavior to try to call attention to what they view as their plight."

[26][25][27] In April 2019, Jackson said that the United States would turn into a "homocracy" if it elects Pete Buttigieg, an openly gay candidate, for president.

[13] Jackson, whose wife is a public school teacher in Newport News, has called for a constitutional amendment for equal resources for homeschooled students.

He pointed to the sharp decline in farms grossing under $100,000 a year, saying it was a result of onerous bureaucracy and regulations.

[40] Jackson ran for senate again in 2018, but he only garnered 12% of the vote in the Republican Party's open primary and failed to advance in the general election.

He campaigned on a right-wing, Christian conservative platform, proposing four new amendments to the United States Constitution if he were to have been elected.