Pete Buttigieg has officially notified supporters that he will be stepping away from the 2020 Democratic primaries ahead of the presidential election. The announcement came after the South Bend, Indiana mayor finished in fourth place in the South Carolina Democratic primary.
Buttigieg made history as the first openly gay major presidential candidate, but ultimately could not hold strong as the race ran on, especially as he failed to reel in Black votes across the board.
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He makes the announcement just ahead of Super Tuesday in which 15 American states and territories will decide the fate of one-third of all delegates. So far, Buttigieg was slated to fall largely behind Joe Biden and Senator Bernie Sanders. The decision also came to put a halt to a Sunday night rally in Dallas, and a Monday morning fundraiser in Austin, Texas.
“Sometimes the longest way around really is the shortest way home,’’ Buttigieg said before a crowd, per The New York Times. “The truth is that the path has narrowed to a close, for our candidacy if not for our cause. Tonight I am making the difficult decision to suspend my campaign for the presidency.”
Sunday night, Senator Sanders spoke in Los Angeles, making a not-so-veiled attempt at reeling in Buttigieg's supporters.
“He is the first openly gay candidate for president of the United States and he did extraordinarily well,” Sanders said. “And tonight, I just want to welcome all of his supporters into our movement and to urge them to joining us in the fight for real change in this country.”