Turns out Santa Claus is real, and he actually lives in North Pole! Don’t get too excited though – North Pole is a suburb in Fairbanks, Alaska, and Santa Claus is the legal name of one of its residents, although he definitely looks the part.

At North Pole, the atmosphere is festive all year. The streets are always decorated in holiday spirit, the light posts look like candy canes and the streets have names like ‘Snowman Lane’ and ‘St. Nicholas Drive’. So it’s only befitting to have a ‘Santa Claus’ live there. According to his Facebook page, Claus is “the only man legally named Santa Claus ever to live in North Pole, Alaska.”

And now Claus in the news for recently running for a city council seat. His profile picture shows him sporting a bushy white beard and red clothes, but unlike his namesake, he seems to be quite a serious guy. “Please do not send me requests for presents,” he posted in the page description.

“Please note that I only reply to business enquiries,” he added on his website. “I do not respond to messages, calls, emails, or letters from children.”

Although he doesn’t hand out gifts, Claus does work for child welfare. “For more than a decade, I have been a volunteer advocate for millions of children who have been abused, neglected, exploited, abandoned, homeless, and institutionalised,” he wrote. “I support organizations and agencies that provide for the health, safety, and welfare of vulnerable children in dire straits.”

Interestingly enough, Mr. Claus also ran for President of the United States in the 2012 elections, but pulled back early in the race, due to lack of support. If only children were allowed to vote, i bet he would have had a real shot. 

Photos: The Santa Claus/Facebook

via Newsminer