John Robitaille at the State Republican Convention

John Robitaille won the State Republican Party endorsement as their candidate for Governor on Wednesday night. In his speech prior to the endorsement vote, he described the readiness and the relevance of his candidacy...

"...Over the past five months, I have built a campaign organization, and we are poised to execute a very targeted and strategic campaign plan to win in November. In the coming weeks, I will be rolling out my specific plans to address the issues most important to the voters: jobs, the economy, taxes and spending. It will be an austerity plan with specific goals and objectives. It will include tax-relief for veterans, for seniors, and for small-businesses." (Audio: 1 min 22 sec)

"There has never been a better opportunity for the Republican Party. Our message is so strong, so timely, so meaningful, that the Democrats are shamelessly trying to hijack it..." (Audio: 1 min 20 sec)

After winning the nomination, according to Ian Donnis of WRNI radio's (1290 AM) On Politics Blog, Mr. Robitaille used his acceptance speech to immediately begin differentiating himself from several of the other candidates in the gubernatorial field...

"We have political opponents who are well-organized, well-funded, and deeply entrenched....They have killed the economy, and now they want to come to our rescue...."

"Democrat Frank Caprio is trying with all his might to sound like a conservative...."

"Mr. Chafee, Rhode Island doesn’t need more taxes, and we certainly don’t need a legacy politician who has abandoned our nation’s founding principles. Linc has moved so far to the left he now appeals to the progressives who’ve been abandoned by Caprio and [Patrick] Lynch...."