A yard sign from DeVos’ 2006 bid for Michigan governor hung from the room’s blackboard and caught DeVos’ eye before he began his speech.

“I appreciate you dragging some of these old signs out of the closet, garage, wherever you were keeping them,” DeVos told the crowd. “If you do have a few spares around, don’t throw them away too quickly.”

Although DeVos alluded to a possible return to the campaign trail, he made it clear he didn’t come to MSU to announce his candidacy and avoided making a decisive statement about his future plans.

“I’m not here to run for anything,” DeVos said after his speech. “I’m here to cheer these kids on because for young people who are so immersed in the college experience to be willing to look beyond themselves to state and national issues, I just have to applaud them. That’s why I was really here.”

Amrit Rijal, a political science freshman, said although he identified more as Libertarian than Republican, he came to the event to find out if DeVos planned on another run for office.

“I just wanted to listen to what he had to say … and if he’s going to run for governor again,” Rijal said.

Bonnie Lamotte, a zoology sophomore, was met by a line of students waiting to enter the room when she arrived.

Lamotte said although she would have went to the meeting even if DeVos wasn’t in attendance, it gave her an opportunity to learn more about him in case he decides to enter the next gubernatorial race.

“It’s definitely cool to come and see Dick DeVos,” Lamotte said. “I was upset that when he ran for governor I wasn’t old enough to vote, so I wanted to come meet him so that if he runs next time around I’ll know more about him.”

Aaron Coy, a mechanical engineering sophomore, voted for DeVos in the last gubernatorial race and said his appearance helped spark more interest in the meeting.

“DeVos definitely adds more of a draw to it,” Coy said.

DeVos proclaimed his support for Republican presidential candidate John McCain and provided his take on the presidential race during his speech.

“I think it’s shaping up to be a real race,” he said. “America really has a choice to make here and I hope folks will take the time and study. Then, really vote with their heart in mind because this is going to be important.”

Louie Glinzak, press secretary for the MSU College Republicans, said the group was pleased with the meeting’s turnout and anticipated DeVos would bring students to it.

“We were hoping Dick DeVos would attract a lot of people who may not know what we were and we were hoping to spark their interest,” Glinzak said.