Las Vegas- IF you had looked at her campaign platform, Miss Melody Damayo wouldn’t have appeared too different from any other candidate fighting the election to be governor in Nevada.

She is a card-carrying member of the conservative Republican party.

She had promised to improve the state’s infrastructure to battle terrorism, upgrade its school system, deal with its growing violent crime rate, and relook its property tax rate.

Oh, did we mention that she’s a former porn star?

Better known by her porn name, Mimi Miyagi, Miss Damayo, 33, created a stir in political circles, despite eventually losing to front-runner and five-term Republican Representative Jim Gibbons in last Tuesday’s election primaries.

And she insists that politics is a serious passion.

The Philippines-born Miss Damayo first got involved in politics in 2001 after her divorce.

She told The New Paper on Sunday: ‘My (divorce) lawyer was running to be a judge and to spend my newly single life’s extra time, I actively started to volunteer in the campaign.

‘In 2004, during the Bush re-election campaign, I applied to volunteer again, and found it to be the place where I felt at home helping people to accomplish the greater good in (the) US.’

The porn star became the treasurer of the Asian American Republican Coalition of Nevada.

Born in Davao City in Mindanao in 1973, Miss Damayo went to the US at the age of 6 with her conservative Christian parents.

Hoping to become an actress, she went to Los Angeles when she was 18, but turned to porn after running out of money.

Her moniker, Mimi Miyagi, is a combination of the nickname given to her by her grandmother and the name of the karate master in the Karate Kid movies.

She made her last film in 2003.

‘I can honestly say being in that industry for almost 14 years has given me more than enough reason to retire from it,’ said Miss Damayo, who has since appeared in some small independent movies.

Going into a gubernatorial race with a history as a porn star had its drawbacks, she admitted.

‘My past as an adult film star has… hindered it in a sense of speculation on my motives for running.

‘But I can promise you this, it is a wonderful passion of mine that brings exhilaration to my life knowing I can add elements to the quality of life for my state.’

She used the media attention generated by her past to get more publicity for her campaign. For example, a recent fund-raiser featured a limbo-rock contest.

At the event, Miss Damayo, dressed in six-inch stilettos and a shirt unbuttoned to reveal her cleavage, said: ‘I want everyone to know that I’m here to bring back the roots of the Republican party: freedom, freedom of speech, freedom to party, free enterprise. Now it’s time to limbo!’

She also belted out Madonna’s Material Girl and offered lap dances, reported the Las Vegas Review Journal.

Miss Damayo believes that she can stick to the roots of the party while adapting some of its views for the current generation.

She added: ‘I believe America must retain its basic principles that have made us strong while developing new and innovative ideas to meet the challenges of… changing times.’

The media in the US treated her candidacy as nothing more than a public relations stunt, with a Las Vegas Sun columnist calling it ‘a joke’.

But Miss Damayo has shrugged off the negative press, saying: ‘I embrace free speech as a wonderful American right. So I also can appreciate all forms of outspoken opinions.’

She turned coy, though, when asked if she planned to continue in politics.

All she would say was: ‘I have recently decided to go back to basics in my plans to fulfil my ‘American Dream’ as a global humanitarian.’

Meanwhile, Miyagi posts on her blog: Finally had to utilize straight up HTML code pulling the image from my own server just to get a picture out to you guys. Sheez! Maybe I need to start doing videoblogs. Or audio blogs. I’ve tried that too, but it seems to have problems too. Well one day the whole internet is going to be just right. Everything is still in the groundbreaking stages. I really want this Video Webcast pod software I have on my wishlist. But I bought the domain MIMI4WORLD.com today, so I’ll have to wait for someone to buy it for me.

I got to hang out with Mika Tan today! She was in town doing a poker event. She hadn’t had any rice for a week, so my bodyguard took us to have real Hawaiian food today. Not as good as seeing a real Luah though I bet.

I spent most of my free time from campaigning running around town getting my daughter new uniforms and tools she needs for class, she starts up again tomorrow. Then I have the Exotic Dancers convention Tue-Thu. Then my parents come into town Saturday. Does my life ever slow down? Man! You know, if it was slow, I probably would freak out. I’ve gotten so used to being on the go now, I have no idea what would happen to me if I step off the circus life I live.