Pete Buttigieg has announced he is ending his campaign for the White House after his campaign lost momentum in recent weeks.
The 38-year-old former Indiana mayor was the first openly gay presidential candidate from a major party.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
“So tonight I am making the difficult decision to suspend my campaign for the presidency.”
CNN says Buttigieg's run was “historic”, adding that “he broke barriers by becoming the first gay candidate to earn primary delegates for a major party's presidential nomination”.
The BBC points out that his decision to drop out comes ahead of a key day tomorrow in the Democratic race to take on Trump. It says that by the end of Super Tuesday, “staunch left-winger Bernie Sanders could have an unbeatable lead”.
“He studied the math,” a leading Democrat familiar with the Buttigieg campaign said. “He knew there wasn't a path forward.”
President Donald Trump predicted that the main beneficiary of Buttigieg’s exit would be Joe Biden. He tweeted: “Pete Buttigieg is OUT. All of his SuperTuesday votes will go to Sleepy Joe Biden. Great timing. This is the REAL beginning of the Dems taking Bernie out of play - NO NOMINATION, AGAIN!”
Fox News agreed, saying the development “likely will harm frontrunner Sanders by providing a coalescing boost to more moderate candidates, as Buttigieg had gone on the offensive against the Vermont senator and sought to appeal to the centrist base of the party”.
The departure leaves six Democrats still in the running. Buttigieg has not endorsed any single candidate, but has pledged he would do “everything in my power” to ensure a Democratic win in November's election.
–––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––For a round-up of the most important stories from around the world - and a concise, refreshing and balanced take on the week’s news agenda - try The Week magazine. Get your first six issues for £6–––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––
-
Political cartoons for January 15Cartoons Thursday’s political cartoons include political parallels, EPA abandoning environment, and more
-
White House halts migrant visas for 75 countriesSpeed Read Brazil, Egypt, Russia, Iran and Somalia are among the nations on the list
-
Trump, Senate GOP block Venezuela war powers voteSpeed Read Two Republicans senators flipped their vote back amid GOP pressure
-
White House halts migrant visas for 75 countries
Speed Read Brazil, Egypt, Russia, Iran and Somalia are among the nations on the list
-
White House ends TPS protections for SomalisSpeed Read The Trump administration has given these Somalis until March 17 to leave the US
-
The high street: Britain’s next political battleground?In the Spotlight Mass closure of shops and influx of organised crime are fuelling voter anger, and offer an opening for Reform UK
-
A running list of everything Trump has named or renamed after himselfIn Depth The Kennedy Center is the latest thing to be slapped with Trump’s name
-
Democrat files to impeach RFK Jr.Speed Read Rep. Haley Stevens filed articles of impeachment against Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
-
Miami elects first Democratic mayor in 28 yearsSpeed Read Eileen Higgins, Miami’s first woman mayor, focused on affordability and Trump’s immigration crackdown in her campaign
-
GOP wins tight House race in red Tennessee districtSpeed Read Republicans maintained their advantage in the House
-
Is a Reform-Tory pact becoming more likely?Today’s Big Question Nigel Farage’s party is ahead in the polls but still falls well short of a Commons majority, while Conservatives are still losing MPs to Reform
