US whistleblower Chelsea Manning to stand for Senate

CHELSEA MANNING, the whistleblower jailed for leaking classified information, is seeking election to the US Senate in the state of Maryland.

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

Ms Manning, 30, was an army intelligence analyst sentenced to 35 years in prison in 2013 for leaking more than 700,000 classified documents related to the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

The revelations by Ms Manning, who is transgender and was then known as Bradley Manning, exposed covered-up misdeeds and possible crimes by US troops and allies. Her actions made Ms Manning a hero to anti-war and anti-secrecy activists. Barack Obama, then president, commuted Ms Manning’s sentence, leading to her release in May.