Republican state Rep. Rob Roberts of Carroll told his hometown paper Monday that while he has yet to decide whether he will seek his party’s nomination for governor in 2010, he is more interested in a running than he has ever been.

And several GOP strategists told Carroll Daily Times Herald columnist and Iowa Independent alum Doug Burns that Roberts has a lot going for him, from his social conservative credentials to what former Republcian Party of Iowa chair David Oman referred to as his “winning personality.”

Roberts said he plans to make a decision by July 4. Sioux City businessman and two-time GOP gubernatorial candidate Bob Vander Plaats is the only person to offically enter the race to unseat Gov. Chet Culver.