Former New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson dies at 75

Richard served as UN ambassador under Clinton
His foundation worked to release Americans held abroad
He also started a foundation to protect wild horses in New Mexico

Updated: Sep 2, 2023 / 05:01 PM CDT

FILE – Former U.S. diplomat Bill Richardson speaks to reporters after a news conference in New York, Nov. 16, 2021. Richardson, who has worked to secure the releases of WNBA star Brittney Griner and another jailed American, Paul Whelan, visited Moscow this week and held meetings with Russian leaders. That’s according to a person familiar with the matter who spoke to The Associated Press on Tuesday night, Sept. 13, 2022.(AP Photo/Seth Wenig, File)

(NewsNation) — Former New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson, 75, died in his sleep at home on Friday night.

The Richardson Center for Global Engagement, which he founded, said in a statement Saturday that he died in his sleep at his home in Chatham, Massachusetts.

“He lived his entire life in the service of others — including both his time in government and his subsequent career helping to free people held hostage or wrongfully detained abroad,” said Mickey Bergman, the vice president of the Richardson Center.

President Joe Biden released a statement Saturday, saying in part, “Few have served our nation in as many capacities or with as much relentlessness, creativity, and good cheer. He will be deeply missed.”

Richardson was elected as New Mexico’s 30th governor in 2003, holding the office through 2011. Prior to his role as the state’s chief executive, Richardson served as a federal lawmaker in the U.S. House of Representatives from January 1983 through February 1997, representing Northern New Mexico in the state’s 3rd Congressional District.

Following his stint in Congress, Richardson later went on to serve as a U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations under President Bill Clinton. He then headed up the U.S. Department of Energy between 1998 and 2001 through the end of Clinton’s second term.

Richardson’s political career continued beyond his last publicly elected role as New Mexico’s governor. Since 2011, the Democrat has worked with the Richardson Center for Global Engagement.

Through his work with the center, Richardson worked to free Americans held abroad, including hostages from Iran and North Korea. His work included working on efforts to secure the release of WNBA Brittney Griner, who was detained in Russia.

“There was no person that Gov. Richardson would not speak with if it held the promise of returning a person to freedom,” Bergman said. “The world has lost a champion for those held unjustly abroad and I have lost a mentor and a dear friend.”

Most recently, Richardson was nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize.

Richardson also founded a second foundation, the Foundation to Preserve New Mexico Wildlife, which has led efforts to protect wild horses.

NewsNation affiliate KRQE contributed to this report.