Patrick gave a blockbuster speech at the 2012 Democratic National Convention. Patrick open to White House bid

Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick signaled Sunday that he would be open to a White House bid at some point, though the governor has previously ruled out seeking the presidency in 2016.

Asked in an interview whether he could see himself as a national candidate — not necessarily in 2016 — the second-term Democrat responded: “Maybe. Maybe.”


“That’s a decision I have to make along with my wife of 30 years, and she’s a tough one to convince,” Patrick said. Prodded further, the former Justice Department official responded: “Let’s just see what time tells.”

Only the second African-American elected governor of a U.S. state, Patrick gave a blockbuster speech at the 2012 Democratic National Convention declaring it was “time for Democrats to stiffen our backbone and stand up for what we believe.”

As Mitt Romney’s successor in the Massachusetts governor’s office, Patrick was a top surrogate for President Barack Obama’s reelection campaign. He returned to the national spotlight last year under grimmer circumstances, as the chief executive of a terror-stricken state after the bombing of the Boston Marathon.

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Speaking on the sidelines of the National Governors Association conference in Washington, Patrick said he is “looking forward to a break” after he leaves office next year, but has every intention of returning to government in the future.

He said he had “no plans” at the moment to run for office again, but declined to rule out the possibility.

“I’d like to have another opportunity to serve. I believe in service. I enjoy it,” Patrick said. “I also like coming and going, you know, because I think that my private-sector life has contributed to how I think about public-sector challenges and what I do in the public sector.”