New Mexico governor Susana Martinez has no desire to be tapped as Donald Trump’s running mate, a spokesman tells THE WEEKLY STANDARD.
“The Governor has said repeatedly over the years that she isn’t interested in serving as Vice President. She appreciates that such attention puts New Mexico in the spotlight, but she is fully committed to serving the people of our state,” Martinez spokesman Chris Sanchez says.
Multiple pundits, including Fox News’s Bill O’Reilly, had floated Martinez, 56, as a choice well-suited to balancing the GOP ticket. After assuming New Mexico’s governorship in 2011, her star rose quickly, earning a nod on the Time 100 in 2013. Her representation of a southwestern state and family heritage helped make her an intriguing newcomer on the national stage for Republicans, and never has that been more apparent than now, given Trump’s anticipated difficulty with corralling some of the country’s growing Latino vote.
Michael Warren wrote of Martinez’s address at the 2012 GOP convention in Tampa:
“And when we left that lunch, we got in the car and I looked over at Chuck and said, ‘I’ll be damned, we’re Republicans.'” That brought the house down. She was also mentioned as a potential vice-presidential pick in 2012 by Mitt Romney himself. But she told THE WEEKLY STANDARD that she’d pass.
