Stan Jones, a frequent Libertarian Party candidate from Bozeman, said he will run for governor again this year.

He said he decided to run for governor rather than mount another U.S. Senate race for one reason: "I've always thought a governor's office has more power and influence," he said.

Jones, 69, said he will file as a candidate for governor on the March 20 deadline.

So far, two other people are running for the office: Gov. Brian Schweitzer, a Democrat, and Sen. Roy Brown of Billings, a Republican.

It will be Jones' third attempt for governor. He lost in 2000 when Gov. Judy Martz won and in 2004 when Schweitzer won. He lost the U.S. Senate in 2002 and 2006.

Jones may have helped influence the outcome of the 2006 Senate race. He polled 10,377 votes, while Republican incumbent Conrad Burns lost to Democrat Jon Tester by 3,562 votes.

"I normally get around my Libertarian 2 percent of the vote," Jones said. "I expect to do much better this time because Ron Paul has awoken the public to Libertarian principles."

Paul, a Republican congressman from Texas and a former Libertarian candidate for president, placed second in the Montana Republican Party's caucus vote last month with 25 percent.

If elected, Jones said his top priority will be standing up to the federal government.

"The federal government is totally and completely out of control," Jones said. "I will stand up to the federal government on every law that they pass that is unconstitutional."

As examples, he said he would stand up against the federal imposition of a Real ID Act.

Jones said Schweitzer is working hard to get other governors to follow his lead, but "I see cracks in the dike already."

Jones also believes the state budget is bloated.

"I would look at every unit of the government of the state of Montana and ask the head of every agency to report what would happen if their budget was cut in half or eliminated," Jones said. "I would start looking at ways of cutting government and cutting substantially."

Asked an example, Jones said he would eliminate the state workers' compensation insurance program. He questioned why state government should be involved in the relationship between employers and employees.

Schweitzer's campaign declined to comment about Jones' entry in the race.

Brown, through campaign spokesman Tyler Matthews, welcomed Jones to the race to debate the issues facing Montana.

"Montanans want fiscal accountability in Helena and they want a stronger economy," Matthews said. "It's clear that that's not what we're getting with the current administration."

Jones is perhaps best known in Montana for his skin, which turned to a shade of blue after he drank a solution of colloidal silver to protect himself from what he thought might be an antibiotics shortage in the new year that began Jan. 1, 2000.

"It's supposed to stay with me forever," he said. "It's gone down. It's not a concern of mine."

He described his coloring as "a good healthy blue."

"If I stand between one guy who's red-faced and another guy who's pale, we'll be very patriotic," Jones said.

Mini bio

Name: Stan Jones.

Office sought: Governor.

Political party: Libertarian.

Age: 69.

Birhdate and place: Jan. 13, 1939, Bozeman.

Home: Bozeman.

Occupation: Retired.

Family: Divorced. No children.

Education: Graduate of Gallatin County High School, 1956; bachelor's degree in general science from Montana State College, 1961; master's degree in business from Arizona State University, 1970.

Past employment: Worked in Iran as contract manager and general manager for Telemedia Inc., a Chicago company, teaching English as a second language to members of Iran's military, 1974-76; worked in contracts department of Telemedia in Chicago, 1977; started and ran business management consulting business in Seattle, 1977-81; worked as director of project management for Tacoma Boat Building Company, 1981-83; worked for Bellevue, Wash., consulting firm, 1983-85, and it was bought out by Price Waterhouse, for which he worked, 1985-87; opened his own consulting business in Seattle area in 1987 and ran it until moving back to Bozeman in 1998.

Military: Served as active duty in the U.S. Air Force, 1961-74, retiring as a major. After retiring from active duty. Picked up a reserve commission and served in the Air Force Reserves until 1989, retiring as a lieutenant Colonel.

Political experience: Lost races as a Libertarian candidate for governor in 2000 and 2004 and for U.S. Senate in 2002 and 2006.