NEWARK, N.J. — New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, who spent three years as president of his high school class, is returning to his alma mater to announce he’s running for president of his country.

The Republican governor is set to launch his campaign Tuesday in the old gymnasium of Livingston High School in the town of Livingston, New Jersey, where he experienced some of his first political victories. Christie remains close to many of his former classmates, who had inklings even then that a career in politics was in his future.

“If you were to poll and ask who would one day be governor, I think Chris would have overwhelmingly won,” said Harlan Coben, now a best-selling author, who served as student council president when Christie was senior class president and played with him on the Little League baseball team in the town about 20 miles west of New York City.