“Anybody who has been a governor and a fairly successful governor has obvious administrative and executive skills and frankly the skills to be a good governor are more likely to be helpful in being president than any other office,” says Steve Roberts, a former member of the RNC.
Indeed, Johnson’s performance as a two-term governor of mostly-blue New Mexico is his strongest card. And his legacy of vetoing a record 750 spending bills and leaving the state budget with a $1 billion surplus could be a strong selling point in a race where soaring government spending are likely to be front and center.
And in a race where most GOP platforms are cookie-cutter replicas, the telegenic Johnson’s strong, unique message will attract attention and could capture a relatively untapped segment of the electorate.
