The GOP 2024 presidential field is getting less crowded with one more candidate dropping out of the race.
Former Vice President Mike Pence on Saturday announced his decision to drop out of the 2024 race after traveling the country and realizing that it was not his time to lead. Pence made the announcement while speaking at the Republican Jewish Coalition (RJC) event in Las Vegas, Nevada.
“There is a time for every purpose under Heaven,” Pence said. “After traveling the country the past six months, it has become clear…this is not my time. So after much prayer and deliberation, I have decided to suspend my campaign for president effective today. As we leave this campaign, we do so with grateful hearts. I will always be grateful for the opportunities my family and I have been given to serve this country. @KarenPence and I want to thank all our supporters across the country, our campaign family, and volunteers. You will always be in our hearts. God bless you all”
“There is a time for every purpose under Heaven.” After traveling the country the past six months, it has become clear…this is not my time.
As we leave this campaign, we do so with grateful hearts. I will always be grateful for the opportunities my family and I have been given… pic.twitter.com/bsmc94Lxjw
— Mike Pence (@Mike_Pence) October 28, 2023
Pence, however, reiterated his desire to continue to fight for and support conservative values and ideals in America.
National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) chairman Sen. Steve Daines (R-MT) urged candidates in the GOP field to drop out of the race and throw their support behind Republican frontrunner and former President Donald Trump.
NEW: NRSC Chairman Steve Daines, who is backing trump, said Trump’s rivals should drop out and coalesce, following Pence’s suspension
“it’s clear President Trump is going to be the nominee” https://t.co/NsFcdCHHUU
— Alex Isenstadt (@politicoalex) October 28, 2023
“I was surprised, but I think that’s the right move,” Daines said of Pence’s announcement. “Because it’s clear President Trump is going to be the nominee for Republicans for president, and the sooner we coalesce around him the better it’s going to be.”
Trump, during a Saturday rally, said Trump should endorse him now that he has dropped out of the race.
“People are leaving now and they’re all endorsing me,” Trump said at an event in Las Vegas, referring to GOP candidates exiting the 2024 presidential race. “I don’t know about Mike Pence. He should endorse me. You know why? Because I had a great, successful presidency and he was the vice president.”
TRUMP ON PENCE: “He should endorse me…because I had a great, successful presidency”
— Benny Johnson (@bennyjohnson) October 29, 2023
Pence is now the fifth candidate to suspend or end their 2024 GOP presidential bid. Republican Miami Mayor Francis Suarez, Popular talk show host Larry Elder, former Rep. Will Hurd (R-TX) and businessman Perry Johnson have all dropped out of the GOP race. While Johnson and Elder backed Trump for the Republican nomination, Hurd endorsed former United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley.
Pence did not say if he was endorsing anyone on the GOP field but called on Americans to vote for a candidate who would appeal to the “better angels of our nature, and not only lead us to victory, but lead our nation back to civility.”
