Democratic State House Candidate Accused of Embellishing Military Service by Own Father

Photo of Clyde Shavers from the Elect Clyde Shavers website media gallery. Elect Clyde Shavers

Democrat Clyde Shavers, a candidate for District 10 of the Washington State House of Representatives, has been accused of lying about his military service by his own father.

According to an archived version of Shavers’ campaign website, the candidate served more than eight years in the U.S. Navy “as a nuclear submarine officer and public affairs officer with tours in the Middle East and Southeast Asia.”

However, according to the Shavers’ own father—as noted in a letter sent to the candidate’s Republican opponent Greg Gilday and published on Nov. 1 by local media outlet Herald Net—those claims are inaccurate.

“Clyde was never a submarine officer, not even for a day,” Brett Shavers, Clyde’s father, wrote.

According to the elder Shavers, who served in the Marine Corps, his son failed to complete his submarine officer pipeline training and had consulted him on how to address the matter heading into the campaign.

“I stressed to Clyde that he must be truthful and simply state that he went through the many weeks of training,” Brett Shavers wrote. “Yet, as seen in campaign materials, Clyde chose instead to claim that he was a submarine officer.”

Further charging that his son has “only disdain” for the military, he continued: “There are no words that I have that could come close to overemphasize Clyde’s negative view of the military, his disdain of enlisted service members, and his revulsion to wear the uniform. This is from conversations that I have had with my son, when trying to convey the honor and privilege of being able to wear such a uniform fell flat on his ears.”

Other claims Shavers made in the letter included that his son has “zero” ties to Washington’s 10^th Legislative District other than through a room that he rents at a bed and breakfast in Whidbey Island, and that his ambition has always been to become president of the United States.

Following the letter’s publication, Clyde Shaverso n Nov. 2, responded to his father’s allegations in a Facebook post, writing, “My father’s writing a politically motivated and inaccurate letter has been one of the most painful experiences of my life.”

Calling his father’s letter “a public and hurtful attack,” the candidate charged: “My father’s far right leanings lead [sic] him to Washington, D.C. on January 6. Now his disdain for seeing Democrats elected has led him to attack his son.”

In his letter, Brett Shavers denied any political motive for speaking out, writing: “My intention with this letter is apolitical, and I have no vested interest in the voting of any person in LD10. My wish for my children is for their success and happiness, and we raised them to value honesty, integrity, and personal sacrifice for others. My personal and professional life hinges on zero room for any dishonesty. These are our values.”

Further, a review of Clyde Shavers’s military records, obtained by The Epoch Times, confirms his father’s assertion that he had never served as a U.S. Navy nuclear submarine officer, though he did undergo that training.

According to data provided by the U.S. Navy, Shavers attended the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland, from 2009 to 2013. He is then listed as having been a student at the Navy Nuclear Power School in Charleston, South Carolina, from July 2013 to February 2014, after which he trained with the Nuclear Power Training Unit in Balston Spa, New York, until August 2015.

Shavers went on to spend two months at the U.S. Defense Information School, and then another month at the U.S. Naval War College before joining U.S. Naval Forces Central Command in Bahrain in November 2015. He also subsequently served on Destroyer Squadron SEVEN, Transient Personnel Unit, and the Navy Reserves, ending his service on Sept. 30, 2021.

The Epoch Times has reached out to Clyde Shavers and Brett Shavers for further comment.