George Pataki Announces 2016 Presidential Bid

Updated at 12:33 p.m. ET

Former New York Gov. George Pataki is adding his name to the list of Republicans running for their party's 2016 presidential nomination.

The presidential run was confirmed Thursday morning, when a video appeared on YouTube and on Pataki's website, on a page called "Announcement" and under a new headline: Pataki For President.

Pataki made a formal announcement in New Hampshire, telling supporters the government was intruding on personal freedoms.

"It is to preserve and protect those freedoms that I announce I'm a candidate for president of the United States," he said.

It will be Pataki's first presidential campaign — his name has surfaced as a potential candidate in the past three elections, but he opted not to run.

"It is time to stand up, protect our freedom, and take back this government," Pataki says in the video.

Noting that he was the Republican governor of "a very deep blue state" for three terms, Pataki says in the video, "My vision was not a partisan vision, it was a vision about people."

In the early years of Pataki's political career, he became mayor of his hometown, Peekskill. He then moved to the state Legislature before serving as New York's governor from 1995 to 2006.

For more on Pataki's candidacy, check out our coverage on the It's All Politics blog:

5 Things You Should Know About George Pataki