Mitt decides to run for governor of Massachusetts. Jane Swift, the first woman to serve as governor in Massachusetts, announced that she was dropping out of the race. Mitt courted Mike Murphy, who served on John McCain’s campaign in 2000. Murphy advised Mitt to perform blue-collar jobs on TV to make him seem more relatable and found that ads focusing on Ann made the family seem less relatable. Mitt emphasized his dedication to civil rights and announced that he was pro-choice. He successfully debated Shannon O’Brien and won the election. 

He set to work on slashing budgets and tried to maintain his dedication to pragmatism. Under his leadership, Massachusetts became the first state to offer universal health coverage. He realized that in order to achieve his presidential ambitions, he would have to change the public perception of him as “a rich guy from a liberal state who’s got a funny religion” (71). The more that he appealed to Republicans around the country, the less popular he became in Massachusetts.

Mitt gave everyone on his campaign team a copy of a master’s thesis, “George Romney in 1968, from Front-Runner to Drop-Out, an Analysis of Cause.” Mitt was determined not to repeat his father’s mistakes.