Former Vice President Mike Pence announced he was suspending his presidential campaign on Saturday after failing to gain enough support among Republican voters.
Pence made the announcement while addressing the Republican Jewish Coalition convention in Las Vegas, Nevada.
“I came here to say it’s become clear to me this is not my time. So after much prayer and deliberation, I have decided to suspend my campaign for president effective today,” Pence said, according to Fox News.
He opted not to endorse any of his competitors on Saturday.
“You know, we always knew this would be an uphill battle, but I have no regrets. The only thing that would have been harder than coming up short would have been if we’d never tried at all,” he said.
As previously reported by The Dallas Express, former President Donald Trump has been leading the pack of Republican presidential hopefuls by a considerable margin. Pence stood out from many of the prospective candidates for his denunciation of Trump following the latter’s second federal indictment.
“The former president is entitled to the presumption of innocence, but with this indictment, his candidacy means more talk about January 6th and more distractions,” Pence claimed at the time, per Fox News. “As Americans, his candidacy means less attention paid to Joe Biden’s disastrous economic policies afflicting millions across the United States and to the pattern of corruption with Hunter.”
Pence also proved to be more supportive than his fellow Republican presidential hopefuls of using taxpayer money to fund Ukraine’s war effort against Russia, something that a growing number of Republicans have appeared to be rejecting in recent months.
“I never want to see American armed forces in Ukraine. I want to give the Ukrainian military what they need to fight and repel the Russian invasion,” Pence said during an exchange with Tucker Carlson over the summer.
Pence concluded his address to the Republican Jewish Coalition by warning against catering to the “siren song of populism.”
“I urge you to hold fast to what matters: faith, family, and the Constitution of the United States of America. I’m proud that our campaign stood firm on America’s role as leader of the free world,” Pence said.
