New Mexico governor considers whom to endorse

Governor Bill Richardson of New Mexico remains undecided on whether to make an endorsement in the Democratic presidential race, but he said yesterday that the party must unify behind a candidate after tomorrow's primaries to avoid a protracted and negative campaign.

In an interview, Richardson - a former presidential candidate - said he doesn't know when he will make a decision or if he will endorse either Hillary Clinton or Barack Obama. "I may wake up tomorrow and do it. Then I may not," he said from Santa Fe.

The governor said he doubts the value of an endorsement in swaying voters, but he acknowledged there is plenty of interest in political circles - including Clinton and Obama, who frequently call him - in whether he throws his support behind one of them.

Richardson is the nation's only Hispanic governor. Hispanics are the nation's largest and fastest-growing minority and a key constituency for Democrats looking to win the White House.

ASSOCIATED PRESS

Governor Charlie Crist of Florida said he would support a repeat of the Democratic presidential primary so that the state's delegates can be counted at the party's national convention.

Howard Dean, chairman of the Democratic National Committee, said he is open to the possibility. Primary elections are paid for by a state's taxpayers, so the offer from Crist, a Republican, is "very helpful" because money is an issue, Dean said. He said the dispute over seating delegates is the fault of party leaders, not Florida voters. "If they would like to fix that problem so that we can seat Florida without any problems, of course we would like to seat Florida," he said.

The party stripped Michigan and Florida of their delegates to the convention as punishment for holding votes before the sanctioned date of Feb. 5. Hillary Clinton beat Barack Obama in the Florida contest, though neither campaigned there in compliance with the party's decision. Clinton won in Michigan after her rivals withdrew from the ballot.

BLOOMBERG NEWS

Howard Wolfson, an adviser to Hillary Clinton, yesterday called on Barack Obama's campaign to release all records concerning his dealings with Chicago businessman Tony Rezko, who has been indicted on fraud charges.

Obama bought a Hyde Park, Ill., house in 2005 below the asking price while Rezko's wife bought the adjacent land. The couple who sold the house said Obama's bid was the best offer.

"They should put out all of the information regarding that real estate transaction," Wolfson said on ABC's "This Week" program, "so that the public can really look at this and say, 'What's going on here?' "

Obama's top strategist, David Axelrod, said the issue has been thoroughly aired and "no one has asserted any wrongdoing" on Obama's part.

BLOOMBERG NEWS