The Republican race for the White House is shrinking. Mike Pence, the former vice president of Donald Trump’s administration, announced Saturday that he is withdrawing from the conservative primary. Indiana is the first high-profile politician to drop out of the gubernatorial race. After six months of campaigning, he chose the Republican Jewish Coalition’s annual convention to announce his departure. The group, one of the nation’s most powerful pro-Israel lobbies, has invited contenders to battle to win the 2024 presidential nomination. Front-runner Donald Trump now has seven contenders.
“I announced my intention to seek the Republican presidential nomination in June because I believe there are many problems in this country. I was raised to believe that to whom much is given, much is required. With everything our country faces, I cannot avoid opportunity. But the Bible teaches us that there is a time for every purpose. , I know clearly now that it’s not my time,” said Pence, 64. He brought his wife, Karen, a Christian school teacher, to the stage to say goodbye.
The governor of Indiana between 2013 and 2017 would immediately stop campaigning and return to his home state with his family. “I always knew this battle would be uphill, but I have no regrets,” he added. On Jan. 15, Pence threw in the towel a few months before the first caucus in Iowa, which typically treats more conservative candidates well, but good results are unlikely.
Halfway through his speech announcing his departure, Pence drew a big gasp from the audience. His message broke the deadlock of the conference, which began at nine in the morning with a program to give a forum to the eight candidates fighting for nominations. One by one, starting with Trumpist businessman Vivek Ramasamy, potential donors marched to condemn Hamas’ actions in the Middle East and Israel’s right to respond forcefully.
“Biden should stop any message asking Israel to limit the use of force,” Pence had said moments before announcing his resignation. “The United States must unconditionally support Israel and block humanitarian aid to Gaza until it releases all those kidnapped by Hamas,” said the former vice president, one of the few to openly acknowledge Trump’s 2020 election loss. and was in favor of transitioning power to Biden.
Last year, Pence attended the same annual convention in Las Vegas to present his autobiography. So God help me Officers closing phrase of service oath. The book chronicles his experience in the Trump White House, where he did not directly criticize the campaign despite his supporters threatening him during the January 6, 2021 attack on the Capitol.
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In a recent study conducted by the journal USA Today, Pence was at the bottom of the race among Republicans with 1% favorability. Despite being part of the Washington leadership, the Christian politician was down in favor with North Dakota’s governor, Doug Burgum, and former New Jersey governor Chris Christie. A staunch critic of Trump.
With his departure, Pence acknowledged many voices within the party calling for those who had no chance of closing the gap on Trump to drop out of the race. It was one of the most talked about topics after the second Republican debate in California, which lost Asa Hutchinson because he did not meet the minimum support requirements in the polls to secure a seat on the ballot. Pence, who now does not reach double digits in the favourites, has saved the embarrassment of dropping out of the third meeting in Miami on November 8. One of the sponsors of that debate was the Republican Jewish Alliance.
Despite his long experience in politics and his sympathy for evangelical voters, Pence has had trouble raising money, one of the strengths that every candidate for the White House must show in the race. As of September, Pence had $1.1 million in the bank and about $620,000 in debt. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and Nikki Haley, Trump’s ambassador to the UN, are the other candidates running for second place with DeSantis. This Saturday, Haley was the only candidate to dedicate a message to Pence after his departure. “He was a good public servant who defended this country and fought for Israel, and we owe it to him,” Haley said. Neither DeSantis nor Trump devoted a single word to Pence.
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