Gary Johnson in Austin

With under 75 days to go until the 2012 presidential election I still have a chance to meet more candidates for the office. On Friday, I met my sixth of this election cycle: Gary Johnson, representing the top of the Libertarian Party ticket.

Austin, I learned, while waiting for Johnson, formerly a two term Republican governor of New Mexico, has a slim but strong Libertarian undercurrent. Members of the Free State Project (an effort by libertarians to move to one state so they can gain enough political power to enact their policies) selected New Hampshire. Dissident libertarians, however, who disliked the Granite State's harsh winters, are attempting a southern version of the project in Austin.

The people out to support Johnson were a diverse group. Take a gander at some of the pictures to confirm this. Johnson is about as ordinary of a person running for president as I've ever met. Of course, that may be because he has no chance of winning.

He arrived at Hills Cafe on South Congress in a light blue polo and jeans, chatting with the crowd and happily posing for pictures. The casualness of the event is exemplified by the guy chugging a Heineken behind me in my photo with the candidate.