Jim Gilchrist

Jim Gilchrist
Born	James Walter Gilchrist, Jr. North Providence, Rhode Island, U.S.
Nationality	American
Occupation	Minuteman Project
Political party	Republican

James Walter "Jim" Gilchrist, Jr.is an American far-right political activist and the co-founder and president of the Minuteman Project, an activist group whose aim is to prevent illegal immigration across the southern border of the United States.

Gilchrist and Chris Simcox are widely recognized as the founders of the Minuteman Project. They founded the organization on October 1, 2004. The two staged a month-long border watch project in April 2005 and that event catapulted the Minuteman movement into the national spotlight. Gilchrist chose to locate in Arizona for the Project, because there was a disproportionately large number of undocumented immigrants crossing in that state.

Gilchrist holds conservative views on education, health care, and taxes. Gilchrist was registered with the American Independent Party, the California affiliate of the Constitution Party, but has since re-registered as a Republican, and is an adamant supporter of immigration enforcement, law enforcement and the military. He announced his endorsement of Mike Huckabee for President in December 2007. The endorsement of Huckabee by Gilchrist met with strong criticism from other minutemen and anti-illegal immigration activists. It should also be noted that this was a personal, individual endorsement by Gilchrist, not an endorsement by any minuteman organization.

Gilchrist unsuccessfully ran as an American Independent Party candidate for the United States House of Representatives representing California's 48th congressional district to replace Republican Christopher Cox, who resigned to become Chairman of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

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