Gary Johnson

American politician, businessman, and 29th Governor of New Mexico.

Johnson indicated interest in running for President of the United States in the 2012 election. In December 2009, Johnson hired strategist Ronald T. Nielson of NSON Opinion Strategy to organize the 501(c)(4) committee Our America Initiative. Nielson has worked with Johnson since 1993 when he ran his successful gubernatorial campaign.

In the April 20, 2009 edition of The American Conservative Magazine, Bill Kauffman told readers to "keep an eye out" for a Johnson presidential campaign in 2012, reporting that Johnson had told him that "he was keeping his options open for…   2012" and that "he may take a shot at the Republican presidential nomination in 2012 as an antiwar, anti-Fed, pro-personal liberties, slash-government-spending candidate — in other words, a Ron Paul libertarian".

During a June 24, 2009 appearance on Fox News's Freedom Watch, host Judge Andrew Napolitano asked Johnson if he would run for President in 2012, to which Johnson responded that he thought it would be inappropriate to openly express his desires before President Obama is given the opportunity to prove himself, but he followed up that statement by saying "it appears personal freedoms are being shoveled out the window, more and more."[not in citation given]

In an October 26, 2009 interview with the Santa Fe New Mexican's Steve Terrell, Johnson announced his decision to form an advocacy committee called the Our America Initiative to help him raise funds and promote small government ideas. The stated focus of the organization is to "...speak out on issues regarding topics such as government efficiency, lowering taxes, ending the war on drugs, protecting civil liberties, revitalizing the economy and promoting entrepreneurship and privatization". The move prompted speculation among media pundits and Johnson's supporters that he may be laying the groundwork for a 2012 presidential run.

Throughout 2010, Johnson repeatedly deflected questions about a 2012 presidential bid by saying his 501(c)(4) status forbids him from expressing a desire to run for federal office on politics. However, he has been outspoken about the issues affecting the country, particularly "the size and cost of government" and the "deficits and debt that truly threaten to consume the U.S. economy, and which represent the single greatest threat to our national security."

On April 21, 2011 Johnson announced via Twitter that "I am running for president." He followed this announcement with a speech at the New Hampshire State House in Concord, New Hampshire.