Former Vice President Mike Pence announces he has suspended his 2024 presidential campaign.
While addressing the Republican Jewish Coalition in Las Vegas on Saturday, Pence took to the stage and said, “So after much prayer and deliberation, I have decided to suspend my campaign for president effective today.”
Pence is the first prominent candidate to exit a race currently overshadowed by former President Donald Trump and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.
Pence's standing in the 2024 Republican presidential primary had weakened prior to his decision, marked by a 57.8% unfavorability rating in the polls and trailing behind Trump, DeSantis, Nikki Haley, and Vivek Ramaswamy, according to the Harvard CAPS / Harris Poll.
The public's lack of support for his candidacy led to fundraising difficulties. According to the New York Times, the latest campaign finance filing revealed $620,000 in debt and just $1.2 million in available cash. Although the campaign managed to meet the donor requirements for the first two Republican primary debates and secure a spot on the stage, it fell short of the 70,000 individual donors required for the third debate, the NYT stated.
Following Pence's suspension, the Democratic National Committee spokesperson Sarafina Chitika issued the following statement: “Mike Pence is just the latest MAGA presidential hopeful to face the consequences of running on a deeply unpopular and extreme agenda focused on stripping away Americans’ freedoms. Pence set the tone for the Republican primary, ensuring Republican candidates lined up behind an extreme agenda of banning abortion nationwide, slashing Social Security and Medicare, and campaigning for election deniers. Good riddance.”
Pence selected the convention for his announcement because “the conflict in Israel is a microcosm of what Pence has been evangelizing regarding populism and traditional conservative values,” his spokesperson, Devin O’Malley, told NBC News.
During his speech at the convention, Pence said, “It was our party that led the fight in the global war on terror, and it will be Republican leadership that will lead us to a future of security, prosperity, and peace for America, Israel, and the world... I will do my part to ensure that now and always, America stands with Israel.”
Pence had announced he was running for president in June, saying it was because he "believe this country is in a lot of trouble."
