At a live event in Knoxville, Tennessee on January 12, 2018, Kane returned to a WWE ring – but not as the Big Red Machine. Knoxville is located in Knox County, in which Kane, real name Glenn Jacobs, serves as the current mayor. Kane came to the ring after an introduction from Seth Rollins, to present a check for $100,000 to Knoxville Public Safety Foundation. The foundation supports both first responders and their families.
My proudest moment in a @WWE ring. pic.twitter.com/nJtAoVuWUi
— Glenn Jacobs (@GlennJacobsTN) January 13, 2019
The massive check, presented by WWE themselves, was part of an agreement for Kane to wrestle at WWE‘s Crown Jewel event this past November in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. While the event itself was surrounded by controversy for many reasons, it did not stop Kane from teaming up with his kayfabe brother, The Undertaker, in a losing effort to Triple H and the returning Shawn Michaels.
Kane was elected the mayor of Knox County, Tennessee’s third biggest county, in August of 2018. Running as a Republican, he would win by a solid margin. He has not, however, officially stepped away from wrestling, making occasional returns, including a brief reunion with old tag partner, Daniel Bryan, in losing efforts to take the tag team titles from the Bludgeon Brothers in June of 2018, shortly before his official election.
Only time will tell what the future holds for Kane’s political and wrestling careers. As long as he keeps up the pace both in the ring and in office, 2019 might be a great year for the Devil’s Favorite Demon.
