Colorado Gov. Jon Hickenlooper just told a New Hampshire cashier he's running for president

(Image credit: Screenshot/Twitter/Adam Sexton)

published 31 October 2018

Democratic Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper is running for president, he kind of announced Wednesday.

Hickenlooper proudly announced his candidacy on Wednesday in a video captured by New Hampshire TV station WMUR. There are just a few problems: He made the announcement to a cashier in New Hampshire, and then immediately started backtracking.

Right before the cameras started rolling, Hickenlooper told a woman working at a country store that he was running for president, WMUR's Adam Sexton tweeted, telling her it was the first time he'd spoken of it publicly. Hickenlooper then said "to be honest, I haven't made the final decision," preferring to leave it at "leaning strongly" toward running and saying there would be "legal ramifications" if he actually announced.

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Hickenlooper served as a two-term mayor of Denver before being elected as governor in 2010 and re-elected in 2014. With a new PAC and nationwide travel plans — hence this New Hampshire visit — multiple outlets have reported he's sneaking toward a 2020 run. But his centrist views don't exactly fit the progressive profile Democrats are expected to run, and he told Politico last month he was still "trying to look at if there is a lane for someone like me" in a national race.

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Kathryn is a graduate of Syracuse University, with degrees in magazine journalism and information technology, along with hours to earn another degree after working at SU's independent paper The Daily Orange. She's currently recovering from a horse addiction while living in New York City, and likes to share her extremely dry sense of humor on Twitter.

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