George Pataki, former New York governor, exited the race for the presidency with an announcement Tuesday.
“While tonight is the end of my journey for the White House as I suspend my campaign for president, I’m confident we can elect the right person, someone who will bring us together,” he said.
Boston Globe reporter James Pindell broke the story when he tweeted Tuesday afternoon that the centrist GOP candidate was calling his New Hampshire supporters to alert them of his intention to suspend his campaign.
Scoop: @GovernorPataki is calling his NH supporters this afternoon telling him he will drop his bid for president #fitn
— James Pindell (@JamesPindell) December 29, 2015
When Pataki entered the race in May, he emphasized his success as “a Republican governor in a deep blue state,” his dedication to small government, and his desire to bring unity to a divided nation. “What unites us, is so much more important than what might seem superficially to divide us. If we are to flourish as a people we have to fall in love with America again,” he said in his announcement video.
Pataki stood apart from his rivals for the Republican nomination by voicing his support for legal abortion, marriage equality, and federal gun control legislation. However, he did vow to repeal President Obama’s signature health care law.
In Republican debates — where he always appeared on the undercard ticket, if he was invited at all — he stressed the resurgence of post-9/11 New York under his three-term governorship and expressed his exasperation that the majority of GOP candidates refused to acknowledge the science supporting man-made climate change. He took particular aim on his party’s frontrunner, Donald Trump, calling his directive to ban all Muslim immigrants unconstitutional, un-American, and wrong.
Throughout his campaign, Pataki failed to build momentum, fundraise successfully, or build much of an organization — a fact that was highlighted, The Hill notes, when he failed to secure a spot on the ballot in the Virginia primary.
This was the 70-year-old former governor’s first bid for the White House. On Tuesday, his national poll average was an even 0.0.
U.S. Republican presidential candidate George Pataki listens as he is introduced at the No Labels Problem Solver Convention in Manchester, New Hampshire October 12, 2015. REUTERS/Brian Snyder
This post has been updated.
