Four Months In, Mike Pence is Out

Former Vice President Mike Pence announced he was ending his presidential campaign on Saturday during a speech in Las Vegas.

“After much prayer and deliberation, I have decided to suspend my campaign for president effective today,” Pence said at the Republican Jewish Coalition gathering in Las Vegas , according to The Associated Press. “We always knew this would be an uphill battle, but I have no regrets.”

Pence announced his campaign launch in a video on June 7, saying, “We can turn this country around, today, our party and our country need a leader who will appeal, as Lincoln said, to the better angels of our nature.”
Pence became the fifth Republican presidential candidate to withdraw from the race, following Miami Mayor Francis Suarez, former Texas Rep. Will Hurd, Michigan businessman Perry Johnson and conservative radio personality Larry Elder.

The former vice president raised $1.2 million during his first fundraising quarter as a candidate, entering the year’s third fundraising quarter with $1.1 million in the bank, according to the Federal Election Commission filing. Pence brought in $3.4 million during the third fundraising quarter, and ended with $1.2 million cash on hand.

The former vice president’s campaign never took off as low approval ratings and his fallout with his former boss, Donald Trump, plagued his short-lived campaign.

The RealClearPolitics average for a 2024 national Republican primary, based on polls conducted between Oct. 4 and Oct. 23, indicates Pence had 3.5% support, behind Trump with 59.1%, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis with 12.6%, former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley with 8.3% and conservative businessman Vivek Ramaswamy with 4.5%.

Mary Lou Masters contributed to this report