Exclusive: Richardson Enters 2008 Presidential Race

"I'm a Westerner," said Richardson on "This Week." "This is a new area that is fertile for the Democratic Party."

But early polling shows Richardson still has a tough road ahead, even in the West. In Nevada, as in nearly all of the other early voting states, polls show him near the bottom of the list of Democratic contenders.

Another hurdle for Richardson will be raising money. Being based in New Mexico, Richardson lacks a natural, wealthy base to tap for money, and in a field crowded with frontrunners like Clinton, Obama, and former North Carolina Sen. John Edwards, Richardson may have trouble raising the nearly $100 million most analysts predict will be needed to earn the nomination. As of mid-December, Richardson had only about $1.3 million in cash to support his bid.

Some have speculated that Richardson's low name recognition and lack of money, combined with his long political resume, indicate he is mostly running for the vice presidential nomination. As he recounts in his autobiography, "Between Worlds," Richardson interviewed for that job with Sen. John Kerry of Massachusetts in 2004, and in 2000 he was talked about as a possible vice presidential nominee on the ticket headed by former Vice President Al Gore.

But in his interview with Stephanopoulos, Richardson denied that he is angling for the No. 2 job.

"I'm not interested in being vice president," said Richardson. "I've got a better job as governor of New Mexico. If I don't get the nomination, I'll come back and be governor."

"This is not a strategy that leads to another position," he added.

If Richardson does make it all the way to the White House, he would make history as the nation's first Hispanic president.

"I wouldn't run as a Hispanic candidate. I would run as an American, proud to be Hispanic," he said. "I wouldn't just be focusing on Hispanic issues or trying to get the Hispanic vote."