New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson has withdrawn as US President-elect Barack Obama's nominee for commerce secretary,.
He said a legal inquiry in his home state would have complicated his Senate confirmation for the job.
Mr Richardson, a former Democratic presidential candidate and one of the country's most prominent Hispanic politicians, became the first casualty among Mr Obama's cabinet picks less than three weeks before the new administration takes office.
Mr Obama, who is heading to Washington to begin the final work ahead of his 20 January inauguration, said in a statement that he accepted Mr Richardson's withdrawal with ‘deep regret.’
Mr Richardson denied any wrongdoing in connection with the probe of a company that had done business with the New Mexico state government.
But he said an investigation lasting possibly weeks or even months ‘would have forced an untenable delay in the confirmation process.’
ill Richardson served as US ambassador to the UN and energy secretary in the Clinton administration and is a former member of the US House of Representatives.
He became an early Obama supporter after dropping his own presidential ambitions, and said he planned to remain as New Mexico's governor.
