Former Vice President Mike Pence has suspended his presidential campaign, bringing an end to his five-month run for the GOP nomination. Pence made the announcement during a speech at the Republican Jewish Coalition's annual leadership summit in Las Vegas. He stated that it had become clear to him that "this is not my time." Notably, Pence did not endorse any particular GOP candidate.
At the time of his withdrawal, Pence was polling fifth in the GOP race with 3.8% support, according to FiveThirtyEight's Republican polling average. This is a significant difference from former President Donald Trump's 56.9% support. Pence's campaign had accumulated approximately $620,000 in debt, as reported by the New York Times.
Throughout his campaign, Pence focused on cutting back on government spending, opposing abortions, and supporting strict immigration policies advocated by Trump. However, tensions between the two have been evident since Pence refused to overturn the 2020 presidential election results, despite pressure from Trump. Pence publicly criticized Trump, stating that "anyone who puts themselves over the Constitution" should never be president again. In response, Trump has insulted Pence, accusing him of going to the "dark side" and being "delusional."
Pence's campaign struggled to gain traction in the polls compared to other candidates like Trump, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley, and biotech millionaire Vivek Ramaswamy.
Looking ahead, Pence has pledged to support the election of "principled Republican leaders to every office in the land."
In conclusion, Mike Pence has decided to suspend his presidential campaign, citing it as not his time. Despite polling fifth in the GOP race, Pence's support was considerably lower than that of former President Donald Trump. The former vice president's campaign also accumulated a substantial amount of debt. Pence's campaign was marked by his differences with Trump, particularly regarding the 2020 election results. Now, Pence aims to focus on supporting fellow Republican leaders in future elections.