Gary Johnson: ever heard of him? After yesterday, his hope is that you’ll know just who he is and what he stands for. The former New Mexico governor has added a poker-themed section to his website, is participating in online poker forums, and has most recently been attending poker events to raise his profile. Johnson appeared in Las Vegas on Thursday to kick off a three day tour. He spoke at the launch of the World Series of Poker Main Event, and this afternoon will attend an event with the Poker Players Alliance.
The world of poker has recently become an important constituency for politicians to interface with, a tactic which has become popular with Republicans in particular. Johnson fits in with many libertarians and tows such popular lines as the legalization of marijuana. With the poker community more unified than ever following Black Friday, the timing is perfect for opportunistic politicians like Johnson to make waves. And, at the same time, maybe raise a few campaign dollars.
Joe Hunter, Johnson’s spokesman, said, “Earlier this year, when the Department of Justice abruptly shut down a number of online poker sites and seized bank accounts, including ones holding players’ funds, a number of Governor Johnson’s supporters were outraged and brought it to his attention. Governor Johnson was similarly disturbed by the government’s actions, and the result is an on-going dialogue with the online poker community.”
Johnson’s campaign recently started a thread in the 2+2 online poker forum titled, “Why Should Poker Players Get to Know Gary Johnson.” In it, Johnson asserts his stance as a defender of personal freedoms and includes among those the right to play online poker. Today, Johnson courts the Poker Players Alliance, an organization with more than a million members. The result of Johnson’s efforts will speak to the power, or lack thereof, for the poker community as a voting block to influence politicians.