Rebekah L. Sanders

The Republic | azcentral.com

A Phoenix strip club has endorsed a Democratic pastor for Congress. And the candidate, Rev. Jarrett Maupin, says he welcomes the The Great Alaskan Bush Company's support.

"The Lord works in mysterious ways," said Maupin, who calls himself a member of the Progressive Christian Coalition.

The strip club recently touted the endorsement on its Grand Avenue sign: "Jarrett Maupin for Congress 'The Rev.'"

Maupin said he heard from the owner that employees voted to back the pastor because he supports affordable student loans, all-day kindergarten and raising the minimum wage.

"What can I say? I support freedom of speech, single moms and college students," Maupin said. "In the long run, it might not be good for (the club). My goal is to help young ladies get their clothes back on."

Though Maupin hasn't "spent a penny" at the strip club, he's not shy about other vices.

"(I'd) go to Washington, smoke cigars and drink brown liquor with the Speaker and get something done for our state," Maupin said this week in an endorsement interview with The Arizona Republic editorial board, explaining how he would work with Republicans if elected to the U.S. House.

Maupin can't vote for himself in the primary because he was convicted of a felony in 2009 for lying to the FBI about alleged criminal behavior by then-Phoenix Mayor Phil Gordon. Addressing the issue this week, he said, "You'd be hard-pressed to find a family in the district that doesn't have several" felonies.

Maupin is running in a close race for the 7th District against three other Democrats to replace retiring longtime U.S. Rep. Ed Pastor, D-Ariz.

The publicity from the strip club is huge for his campaign, Maupin said.

"Everybody goes in there," Maupin said. "Men and women, doctors, lawyers, construction workers, members of the Legislature, I'm told. A lot of people are going to see it."

It's not the adult entertainment venue's first intersection with politics.

In 2005, a Phoenix city council candidate, Andre Campos, took heat for listing the strip club's address as his place of employment. Campos said his marketing company, Spanky Entertainment, catered to adult bars and restaurants and had worked for the Bush Company.