Paris train attack hero running for local office in Oregon

One of the men who helped stop a terrorist attack on a Paris-bound train in 2015 has announced he’s running for local office in Oregon.

The News-Review in Oregon reported that Alek Skarlatos announced his candidacy on Tuesday for a Douglas County commissioner seat. ­The county is located in southwest Oregon.

He made his announcement at the county’s Republican headquarters.

Skarlatos, 25, said he has been interested in politics from a young age, telling the News-Review that he would work to create more jobs in the county, with a focus on jobs for skilled trade workers. 

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He added that he supports Second Amendment rights.

“Somebody is going to have to step up and represent the next generation in Douglas County,” Skarlatos told The News-Review.

Skarlatos, a Douglas County native, was one of three Americans who confronted a gunman aboard a Paris-bound train in August 2015.

The attacker opened fire onboard a train heading from Amsterdam to Paris but was subdued by Skarlatos, Anthony Sadler and Spencer Stone.

Three passengers were injured in the incident, sustaining knife or gunshot wounds, none of them life-threatening.

Skarlatos, Sadler and Stone were hailed as heroes and went on to portray themselves in a Clint Eastwood film about the incident that was released earlier this year.