By FELICIA FONSECA | Associated Press

Fri Jan 11, 2008 2:51 am

ALBUQUERQUE — With his presidential bid suddenly behind him, Gov. Bill Richardson won praise Thursday from some New Mexicans for ending the campaign when he did and focusing again on his home state.

Taking a break for lunch Thursday in downtown Albuquerque, Bob Paolino expressed doubt that Richardson could have clinched the Democratic nomination and said now was a good time to pull out. The New Mexico Legislature begins its work Tuesday.

"I think he needs to stay home," said Paolino, 58. "We have more than enough problems in the state. A governor who runs for president is no longer a governor because he can't do two things at once."

Richardson announced his decision Thursday to bow out of the race after falling below 5 percent in the Tuesday's New Hampshire primary and coming in with just 2 percent in the Iowa caucus last week. He had said all along his campaign would be an uphill battle.

Though some voters said it's too early to tell how Richardson was faring in the race, others said the timing of Richardson's decision made no difference. "Today, tomorrow, next week, what does it matter?" said Meriah Heredia Griego, 29. "I commend him for his work, but we need a governor. If he was winning, I'd say, 'Go ahead dude, we'll run the state.' But if you're losing, come home."

Kim Davis, a 45-year-old city employee, said she wasn't surprised Richardson called it quits. She said he might have been able to prolong his campaign had he polled in double digits in the early primaries. "I think he's a great governor, and he might have been a decent president, but he wasn't my favorite," she said. "He wasn't really out there on the scene. He didn't have enough controversy in his life."

Dan Cosper agreed. "He didn't seem as exciting, where Hillary (Clinton) and (Barack) Obama have star power," the 44-year-old University of New Mexico employee said.

While Richardson had one of the most wide-ranging résumés of any candidate ever to run for the presidency, Cosper said that didn't impress him. "I didn't think he was doing too well, but I thought he'd last longer than this. I thought he'd hang on until the Western states where he thought he'd do better."

Raylnn Skeets of Santa Fe was impressed by Richardson's determination to be the country's next president and said she believed he had been doing pretty well. "He probably needed to be more well-known," the 18-year-old said. "He presented himself well but not as much as the top candidates. I think he was lacking an audience."

Theresa Gonzales, 31, said Richardson no doubt had the confidence and experience to lead the country. But Gonzales disagreed with Richardson's stance on immigration, which included securing the border and penalizing employers for knowingly hiring illegal workers.

Gonzales added that Richardson also lacked community support. "You have to have the support of your local community before you can get national support," she said.