Former New York Gov. George Pataki Announces Run For President

Former New York Gov. George Pataki announced Thursday that he will seek the Republican Party's 2016 presidential nomination. He indicated that holding office for three terms as New York's governor would work in his favor.

Pataki launched his campaign in New Hampshire, an early primary state. He premiered a campaign video in which he stressed that he would like a government that's smaller in size. He added that he would like to improve the national security of the United States and try to ease up political rivalries.

"America has a big decision to make about who we're going to be and what we're going to stand for,” the Washington Post quoted Pataki as saying in the video. “Let us all understand that what unites us is so much more important than what might seem superficially to divide us." Pataki added that the American system was “broken.”

Pataki reminded voters that from 1995 to 2006 he was a Republican governor in a “very deep blue state,” meaning one whose voters lean heavily toward the Democratic Party. He said that everyone would have to “fall in love with” America once again for it to flourish as a nation. At the end of the video on his official website, the moderate Republican also reminded people of his leadership after the 9/11 terror attacks.

Pataki won the governorship by defeating liberal icon Mario Cuomo in 1994. However, he has not been active on the national platform since leaving office in 2006.

USA Today reported that Pataki was close to announcing a presidential campaign three times in the past: in 2000, in 2008 and in 2012. However, he eventually withdrew from the competition, stating that the time was not right.

The seasoned politician said in April that he had the habit of making a joke about running for the presidency every four years. Whenever there is a soccer World Cup, he comes to New Hampshire while considering the possibility of running for president, Pataki quipped.

It may be difficult for Pataki to bank on his post-9/11 leadeship to have an upper hand in the race. Three “Jeopardy” contestants failed to recognize him when they were shown his photo in January.