Mike Pence Drops out of 2024 Race

On Saturday, during a speech in Las Vegas, former Vice President Mike Pence announced that he is ending his 2024 presidential campaign.

“I just couldn’t sit this one out,” Pence said in remarks to the Republican Jewish Coalition Conference. “But the Bible tells us that there’s a time for every purpose under heaven. And  traveling across the country over the past six months, I came here to say it’s become clear to me this in not my time.”

“So, after much prayer and deliberation I have decided to suspend my campaign for president effective today. Now, I’m leaving this campaign, but let me promise you I will never leave the fight for conservative values and I will never stop fighting to elect principled Republican leaders to every office. In the land. So help me God,” he continued.

“To the American people, I say: this is not my time, but it is still your time,” he added.

🚨🚨🚨Mike Pence DROPS OUT of 2024 Presidential Race

Watch: pic.twitter.com/xRTucsmFqV

— Benny Johnson (@bennyjohnson) October 28, 2023

Pence’s campaign was always a nonstarter. In a party dominated by Trump supporters, many still blame him for the certification of the 2020 election despite outstanding questions and concerns of election irregularities in battleground states. While Pence had no such authority, Trump has wrongly insisted that he did, and many of his diehard supporters have followed suit.  Pence, despite his actions on January 6, has acknowledged that there were irregularities in the 2020 election.

“On January 6th, I said that I believe there were irregularities about which I was concerned, and I wanted them to have a fair hearing before the Congress,” Pence said. “But from the founding of this nation forward, it’s been well established that elections are to be governed at the state level and that the only role that Congress has is to open and count the electoral votes that are submitted by states across the country. No more, no less than that.”

Pence’s campaign never had much of a chance. He’s never polled above single digits, and his fundraising hasn’t been spectacular either.

“Filings show Pence raised $3.3 million during the third fundraising quarter, coupled with around $620,000 in debt. He ended September with just around $1.2 million in cash on hand,” reports The Hill. “By comparison, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis — long considered Trump’s closest challenger — brought in $15 million across his campaign committee, leadership PAC and joint fundraising committee in the third quarter. Former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley brought in $11 million between three of her political committees during that same period.”