2010, Bolling filed the necessary paperwork to run in 2013. Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli, elected alongside McDonnell and Bolling in 2009, stated that he intended to run for re-election as attorney general in 2013, but did not rule out running for governor. In December 2011, Cuccinelli announced to his staff that he would run against Bolling for governor in 2013; the news went public, and in response, Bolling issued a statement accusing Cuccinelli of putting "his own personal ambition ahead of the best interests of the commonwealth and the Republican Party." Cuccinelli's announcement came two days before the annual statewide conference of Virginia Republicans, at which Bolling and his staff expressed being upset with Cuccinelli's decision. In 2012, Bolling was the Virginia state Chairman of Mitt Romney's 2012 presidential campaign, a position he hoped to use to curry favor from a potential Romney administration and increase his own name recognition among state Republicans. Through the second quarter of 2012, Bolling had a significant edge in fundraising over Cuccinelli. However, Bolling's hopes of becoming the Republican nominee were dealt a serious setback in June 2012 when the Republican Party of Virginia's State Central Committee decided to nominate candidates for statewide office in a closed party convention, rather than an open statewide primary. It was felt that a convention would favor Cuccinelli because Republican conventions in Virginia are typically dominated by conservatives, who backed Cuccinelli over the more moderate Bolling. On November 28, 2012, Bolling announced that he was suspending his campaign. He said that "the decision to change the method of nomination from a primary to a convention created too many obstacles for us to overcome", and that he didn't want to "create deep divisions within our party." He refused to endorse Cuccinelli, saying, "I have serious reservations about his ability to effectively and responsibly lead our state." After suspending his campaign for the Republican nomination, Bolling considered running as an independent, but decided against it. Bolling also rejected the possibility of a write-in effort, citing an inability to raise enough money to run a successful campaign. However, Bolling continued to comment on the race and the policy proposals of both the Democratic nominee, Terry McAuliffe, and the Republican nominee, Ken Cuccinelli. During the campaign, McAuliffe informally offered Bolling a position in his administration, but Bolling was ultimately never appointed. Electoral history Business career Professionally, Bolling spent his entire career