Election 2008 - Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton, Rudy Giuliani, War in Iraq, Health Care, Global Warming, Education, Abortion

Read a profile

Compare the candidates

NEW! Quick Poll

Do you think Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton should run together?

Yes
No

See previous poll results!

See Their Weddings!

Let's Talk

What do you think about the 2008 candidates and the issues? Join the discussion at The Knot, The Nest or Wedding Channel

Find Your Polling Place

Election Information by State

Upcoming Primaries

5/6 Indiana, North Carolina

5/13 Nebraska (R), W. Virginia (D)

5/18 Hawaii (R)

See all primary dates

Quick Facts

Age: 60

Party: Democratic Party

Marital Status:
Married to Barbara

Wedding Date:
Saturday, August 05, 1972

Education:
BA from Tufts University in French and Political Science; MA from The Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy

Birthplace:
Pasadena, California

Bill Richardson

Officially dropped out of the race: January 10, 2007

Where's he from? Hailing from California, Bill Richardson lived in Mexico City as a child -- his mother was from Mexico and his father was a naturalized American from Nicaragua.

When did he get into politics? After undergrad, Richardson earned his law degree and in 1978, he moved to Santa Fe, where began running for Congress.

Political resume? Richardson served just over 14 years in Congress spending a lot of his time on foreign relations. In 1997, Richardson was appointed ambassador to the United Nations where he served for a year, until he became the Secretary of Energy under the Clinton administration. Richardson was elected governor of New Mexico in 2002 and won reelection in 2006.

Hot issues? Richardson’s top issues are the war in Iraq, health care reform, and energy policy.

Issue	Position
Abortion	Supports abortion rights.

Education	Wants to reform No Child Left Behind and to establish a federal pre-kindergarten program.

Environment-Energy	Wants to fund and add support the Clean Water Act and the Clean Air Act in order to cut down on greenhouse gas emissions.

Health Care	Supports a health care plan that would give coverage to Americans through tax incentives and by opening up existing government health care systems to more Americans.

Immigration	Supports securing borders with trained guards. Supports creating a reasonable legal path to citizenship for illegal immigrants go through a background check, learn English, and pay back taxes and fines. Wants to crack down on immigration fraud by focusing on employers, and wants to increase immigration for guest workers.

Iraq War	Has always opposed the war in Iraq and supports a quick troop withdrawal. Wants Congress to de-authorize the war in Iraq and to redeploy troops to Afghanistan and other countries with terrorist networks.

Same-sex Marriage	Opposes same-sex marriage, but supports legal rights and benefits for same-sex partners.

Taxes	Opposes extension of the 2001 and 2003 Bush tax cuts. Wants to create tax cuts for active-duty and retired military personnel, low-income families, and small businesses.

Women's Rights	Supports funding to domestic violence shelters and programs statewide. Supports a bill that would require businesses to hire more women and minorities.

Hilary for VP? "Just curious if you want her to run on the ticket..." read more on The Knot boards

Should Obama Pay Clinton's Debt? "Is it customary for a former member..." read more on The Nest boards

Views on Illegal Immigration? "I personally have no problem..." read more on Wedding Channel boards