Governor Bill Richardson (D-NM)
Born November 15, 1947 in Pasadena, California to an American father and Mexican mother, Governor BILL RICHADSON grew up in Mexico City before moving to New England, where he attended high school and college. He has dedicated his life to public service, as a Congressman, Ambassador to the United Nations, Secretary of Energy, and now as Governor of New Mexico.
Governor Richardson was recently re-elected to a second term as Governor of New Mexico with the support of 69 percent of voters. One of his first acts as Governor was to reinstate collective bargaining rights for state employees. He secured the first public works labor agreement in New Mexico history, and made New Mexico’s prevailing wage a union wage.
Governor Richardson balanced the budget but at the same time increased school funding by over $600 million. He made it a priority to pay our teachers what they deserve—New Mexico’s teachers have received a raise every year for the last four years. And teacher pay rankings will have climbed from 46th when he took office to 27th after this year’s raises are implemented.
In New Mexico he worked to secure health insurance for every child under five. Governor Richardson lowered the cost of health care for working families and helped small businesses create purchasing pools so they can get the same lower insurance rate as large employers.
His fiscally responsible governing style has allowed New Mexico to tackle important priorities, while maintaining a balanced budget and the highest reserves in state history. He cut $230 million in bureaucratic waste, invested in new opportunities for New Mexico’s children and returned more than $1 billion dollars in taxes to working families.
Governor Richardson has also worked with world leaders to build alliances and help prevent the development of nuclear weapons in North Korea. He has been nominated four times for the Nobel Peace Prize for negotiating the release of hostages, American servicemen, and political prisoners in North Korea, Iraq, and Cuba.
Governor Richardson has been married to his high school sweetheart, Barbara, for 33 years. He received a BA from Tufts in 1970 and a MA from Tuft’s Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy in 1971.