Bill Richardson

William Blaine "Bill" Richardson (born November 15, 1947) is an American politician and a member of the Democratic Party. He is currently the governor of New Mexico. Before this he had served as ambassador to the United Nations from 1997 to 1998, during which he had to deal with crises in the Middle East, and as U.S. Secretary of Energy from 1998 to 2001. He was appointed to both of these positoions by Bill Clinton.

Richardson was elected governor of New Mexico in November 2002, defeating the Republican candidate, John Sanchez by 17 percentage points (56%-39%). He succeeded a two-term republican governor, Gary Johnson. He took office in January 2003.

Even as governor, Richardson continues to be interested in foreign policy. During the summer of 2003 he met with a delegation from North Korea to discuss concerns over that country's use of nuclear energy.