Anti-Trump conservative Evan McMullin to launch independent presidential bid

Evan McMullin, a former CIA agent and the chief policy director of the House Republican Conference, will reportedly announce an independent presidential run on Monday, offering an alternative for #NeverTrump conservatives.

McMullin is a relative unknown in the political sphere and has never held elective office. At the time of this writing, he barely had 2,000 Twitter followers. But "people close to the effort suggested McMullin would have the backing of serious Republican donors and fundraisers," BuzzFeed reports. "They also pointed to his ties to Utah, a state where polls show Trump badly underperforming with the Mormon-heavy electorate."

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Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.