Ron Paul: Out

Rep. Ron Paul announced today that he will not compete in any of the remaining GOP presidential primaries.

Mr. Paul said he will continue to work to win delegates in states that have already voted and where the process of delegate-selection is playing out. He said that’s a way to make his voice heard at the Republican nominating convention in Tampa, Fla., in August.

“Moving forward, however, we will no longer spend resources campaigning in primaries in states that have not yet voted,” Mr. Paul said. “Doing so with any hope of success would take many tens of millions of dollars we simply do not have.”

He did encourage his supporters to still turn out and vote.

His decision not to compete for new votes in other states leaves Mr. Romney as the only candidate still actively fighting for voters’ support in the 11 states still to vote. That list includes the biggest prizes on the board — Texas and California.

Dropping out of future states doesn’t mean Paul is halting activity in the states that have already caucuses and primaries. He is still very active in those. He poached a majority of delegates from Nevada despite winning just 19% of the vote there, and his supporters sparked a fracas in Oklahoma over the weekend.

Update: Let the conspiracies begin!