Tufts alum Bill Richardson (LA '70, F '71) officially entered the race for the Democratic nomination in the 2008 presidential election on Sunday by posting a video on his Web site, according to an Associated Press (AP) article.
The 59-year-old Hispanic governor of New Mexico further contributes to the diversity of this race for the White House. If elected, Richardson would become the United States' first Hispanic president. Illinois Senator Barack Obama would become the first African American commander-in-chief, and New York Senator Hillary Clinton the first female president if elected.
All of them have made formal announcements of their intentions to seek the Democratic nomination.
Tufts senior Jacob Berliner, who worked at Richardson's office over the summer, believes that Richardson would be the right choice. "I think he would make a fantastic president," he said.
Berliner said Richardson has an impressive r?©sum?© that qualifies him for the job. He has been elected to Congress, served as a United Nations ambassador, as the Secretary of Energy under President Bill Clinton, and most recently as governor of New Mexico since 2002.
Berliner also said that Richardson has command of some of the important issues for the election.
"Two issues he has the biggest strength on are energy ... and foreign policy and restoring America's role in the world," he said.
Richardson has increased renewable energy use in New Mexico and is very aware of the tie between energy and foreign policy, according to Berliner.
The candidate has also engaged in negations on diverse foreign policy issues including North Korea's nuclear capacity and Sudan's position on Darfur.
As a politician, Richardson has supported bringing troops home from Iraq as quickly as possible and working to decrease the division between the parties that currently exists, according to the AP.
Despite his credentials and successes in New Mexico, his campaign will not be without difficulties. One such obstacle will be procuring the funds necessary for the campaign.
According to the AP, he will rely on an exploratory committee to examine fundraising issues.
Another problem might be increasing his public profile. Berliner said that name recognition is "the number one issue" for the governor's campaign. Currently, according to the AP, he is not doing well in preliminary polls.
"If he had the name recognition of Clinton or Obama, he'd be ahead of them," Berliner said.
If his candidacy is successful, he will become the first ever Tufts alum elected to the presidency. "This is a phenomenal opportunity for Tufts," Berliner said.
