Image copyright Alamy/Getty Image caption Glenn Jacobs made his name playing the masked wrestler Kane
A WWE star who made his name playing "a monstrous abomination" in the ring has been elected mayor in Tennessee.
Glenn Jacobs, who wrestling fans will know better as Kane, won two-thirds of the vote in Knox County, beating Democrat Linda Haney.
The 51-year-old Republican ran on issues like keeping taxes low, improved infrastructure and "transparency".
He is the second WWE star to win public office in the US, following in Jesse Ventura's footsteps.
Mr Ventura was elected mayor of Brooklyn Park, Minnesota, in 1990, going on to be elected state governor in 1998.
'Childhood nightmares'
Mr Jacobs rose to fame in the mid-90s with his breakthrough character Kane, the masked half-brother of The Undertaker.
But despite Kane being described as "a monstrous abomination that seems to have been extracted directly from your childhood nightmares", Mr Jacobs believes his former career will be a help and not a hindrance.
"The thing someone like me brings to a race like this is, because of who I am, I can put Knox County in a positive light, nationally," he told local news station WBIR. "There are so many great things our county has to offer, and frankly the rest of the country needs to know about it."
His colleagues at the WWE were also quick to tweet congratulations.
It is unclear if the wrestler now plans to hang up his mask for good, in order to allow him to focus on his political career. He last appeared as Kane just a few weeks ago, in June.
Mr Jacobs, who also owns an insurance business in Knoxville, will be sworn in as mayor on 1 September.
In the meantime, Knox County's reporters are no doubt scrambling for ideas on how best to interview the 6ft 8in mayor. Luckily, at least one of them had a crate on hand on Thursday.
KNOX COUNTY - Mantan bintang gulat dari World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE), Glenn Jacobs, atau yang lebih dikenal dengan nama panggungnya, Kane, telah terpilih sebagai wali kota di Tennessee, Amerika Serikat (AS). Jacobs memenangi pemilihan di Knox County, Jacobs dengan keunggulan dua pertiga suara dari saingannya, Linda Haney.
Pria berusia 51 tahun itu mencalonkan diri melalui Partai Republik dengan mengedepankan isu seperti pajak yang rendah, perbaikan infrastruktur dan transparansi. Jacobs menjadi bintang WWE kedua yang menjadi pejabat pemerintah di AS, setelah Jesse Ventura yang terpilih sebagai wali kota di Brooklyn Park, Minnesota pada 1990 sebelum terpilih menjadi gubernur negara bagian pada 1998.
Jacobs terkenal pada pertengahan 1990-an dengan karakter ikoniknya, Kane, pengulat bertopeng, adik dari karakter The Undertaker yang diperankan oleh Mark William Calaway. Meski karakter Kane digambarkan sebagai sosok mengerikan seperti mimpi buruk, Jacobs yakin hal itu tidak akan menghambat kariernya sebagai pejabat dan justru akan membantunya.
"Hal yang membuat orang seperti saya ambil bagian dalam persaingan seperti ini adalah karena siapa saya dan saya dapat menempatkan Knox County dalam sorotan yang positif, secara nasional,” kata Jacobs kepada stasiun berita lokal WBIR sebagaimana dilansir BBC , Jumat (3/8/2018).
"Ada begitu banyak hal hebat yang ditawarkan county kami, dan sejujurnya negara lain perlu mengetahuinya."
Pemilik perusahaan asuransi di Knoxville itu akan diambil sumpahnya sebagai wali kota pada 1 September mendatang.
Glenn Jacobs, best known as Kane - a long-serving WWE superstar and former world champion - has been elected mayor of the third-most populous county in Tennessee.
Running as a Republican, Jacobs defeated Democratic candidate Linda Haney 31,739 votes to 16,611.
Jacobs was born in Spain and grew up near St. Louis, Missouri, though his character Kane is infamously billed as hailing from either "Hell" or "parts unknown".
The 51-year-old unseated a Democrat to become Knox County's 29th mayor, running as a libertarian and promising tax cuts along with improvements to education and infrastructure.
As of the 2010 census, the Knox County population was 432,226.
Jacobs, whose wrestling persona nickname is "The Big Red Machine" (appropriately, given the GOP embraces the colour) said he was met with “pretty astounding laughter” among the political establishment when he first announced his plans to run for mayor but that this "made me want it even more.”
The Independent has contacted the WWE to find out how the news will affect Kane's wrestling career. With President Trump having face criticism for the amount of time he spends on the golf course, Jacobs' might want to limit the amount of chokeslams he delivers outside of mayoral duties.
