COLUMBUS, Ohio Karen Kasich believes people all across America have a great deal in common a conclusion she has drawn while on the presidential campaign trail with her husband, Ohio Gov. John Kasich.

But don’t expect to find her exclusively traveling across the country with the govenor as he continues his quest for the GOP presidential nomination, as she’s more likely to be found at their home in Westerville, Ohio, raising the couple’s twin daughters.

The Buckeye State’s first lady discussed her family, the 2016 election and her role just a few days ahead of Ohio’s pivotal primary election. As voters head to the polls on Tuesday, they have four Republican candidates to choose from: John Kasich, Donald Trump and U.S. Sens. Marc Rubio and Ted Cruz. On the Democratic ticket are former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders.

In her role as Ohio’s first lady, Karen Kasich has focused squarely on issues that concern children and young people. Perhaps that is because she considers motherhood to be the most important job she has ever held. She and the governor have twin daughters, Emma and Reese, who are now 16 years old.

Mrs. Kasich’s initiatives at the state level promote education and literacy, physical fitness and a drug-free lifestyle. She said each of these programs would translate well to her work at the national level, should her husband win the presidency.

“As we travel the country, John does town halls and people ask questions. They are largely the same no matter where we go,” she said. “They always ask, ‘What can we do to stop the scourge of drugs in our communities?’ We see the same issues and concerns over and over.”

If she were to become the nation’s first lady, Kasich said her interests and efforts would remain largely unchanged.

“What I have been focused on in Ohio would continue, no matter where we were living,” she said. “I’m all about young people. I believe they are our most precious natural resource, and we need to grow and develop that resource.”

Since her husband became governor, she has been working with schools on fitness, health and wellness, and food insecurity. She expanded a program that sends students home from school on Fridays with backpacks containing food for the weekend, so they can return to school on Monday ready to learn.

She cited her “Start Talking!” initiative, aimed at improving communication between parents and children in an effort to reduce drug and alcohol use, as a particularly important program. Some of the other issues she works to combat include infant mortality and human trafficking.

“I really didn’t know human trafficking existed here in Ohio,” she said, noting the issue came to her attention after her husband became the state’s chief executive. “They are often faceless victims. I am trying to put a face on these women and help people to understand they are victims, not perpetrators. We need to help them get out of this cycle of abuse.”

Although she now feels comfortable in the first lady’s role, Mrs. Kasich said it was not something she dreamed about or anticipated as a young woman.

“I never even thought about politics,” she said. “When I met my husband, I was working my first job and was told to get photos for a magazine of several officials – he was just one of them.”

Serving as a congressman at the time, John Kasich later called to ask then-Karen Waldbillig to lunch. When she called her mother to express surprise at getting this invitation from a congressman and to ask for advice, her mother told her to read up on the news for a crash course on current political affairs.

“When we met, I remember we laughed all the time,” Mrs. Kasich said of their courtship. “We just had a good time together, and that continued as we dated.”

Despite their very different career paths Karen has a degree in communications and has worked in public relations and advertising she said both she and her husband are “into health and fitness,” and they are very involved in their church, St. Augustine’s Anglican Church in Westerville.

“We’re just kindred spirits. We enjoy the same things,” she continued. “He’s a lot more outgoing – he verbalizes, I’m more internal – it’s a good balance.”

Asked what role her background in public relations and advertising has played in the presidential campaign, Mrs. Kasich said she has not been overly involved in the day-to-day operations.

“He has experts who are much more schooled and experienced than I,” she said. “It does help that I don’t come from, for example, an accounting background. I am very comfortable speaking with the media and making speeches. … But I am happy to stay behind the scenes to advise and support.”

A few years ago, Gov. Kasich said publicly that he did not plan to run for president because his wife would not stand for it. Mrs. Kasich acknowledged that she had been opposed to the idea, but said she decided she could not stand in the way of his current campaign.

“He did have to bring me along,” she said of his bid for the White House. “But when I saw what John and his team were able do for our state – balance the budget and get rid of $8 billion in debt, create 400,000 private sector jobs and reduce the cost of Medicaid without cutting services – I decided that if he thinks he can do this for the country, I really need to let him do that. He has a great vision.”

She added that one of their daughters fully supports the presidential campaign, while the other has reservations.

“I won’t say which one, but one daughter is on the fence,” the proud mother said. “She thinks, ‘Daddy runs, daddy wins, I move.'”

Mrs. Kasich said the biggest impact the campaign has had on the family is that it has taken her husband away from home. During his work as governor, he has been able to spend most nights at their home in Westerville, she said. But the governor, his wife and daughters are still able to see each other regularly using online tools, even when he is stumping halfway across the country. She also said the campaign has benefited all of them.

“It’s been a great opportunity to hop on and off the campaign trail,” she said. “We have gotten to see lots of parts of America, meet the people and hear what they are thinking. That part’s been a real blessing.”

With their daughters at 16 and preparing to head off to college in a couple of years, Mrs. Kasich is giving some thought to her own future and whether she will return to work.

“Once in a while I miss working,” she said. “But then I think, ‘I am working.’ It’s a great opportunity to be first lady and to visit communities around the state. I am working, I’m just not being paid.

“I feel like it’s been my purpose to raise these girls, to bring them up to be the best people they can be.”

She noted that she has not made many visits to eastern Ohio. She said when her husband became governor, she wanted to ensure that she was a mom first. That meant she needed to be near home so she could pick the girls up from school and take them to after-school activities and be there to help with their homework.

“I wanted to do what other moms do,” she said.

In addition to her work with youth, Mrs. Kasich has done much in support of the arts. While the family continues to live at their Westerville home rather than in the state-owned Governor’s Residence, she has welcomed about 7,000 people each year to that residence and started a program that allows visitors to view some original Ohio artwork while they are there. Working with the Ohio Arts Council, she created the Spotlight program, which puts the works of a different Ohio artist on display at the residence each quarter.

“I have very much enjoyed being first lady,” she added, “I have met so many people doing wonderful things in their communities – not waiting for the governor to come and do it for them, taking things into their own hands. I have enjoyed getting to know about all of those.”