Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker has dropped his bid for the 2016 Republican presidential nomination, saying that the race has “drifted into personal attacks”, and suggesting that front-runner Donald Trump is to blame.
During a brief press conference in Madison on Monday afternoon, Mr Walker announced that he was suspending his campaign, and urged others in the crowded GOP field to consider doing the same, so that “voters can focus on a limited number of candidates, who can offer a positive conservative alternative to the current front-runner.”
As Mr Walker launched his presidential campaign on 13 July, few could have predicted he would leave the race again so soon. The 47-year-old former Boy Scout instantly became a top seeded candidate, leading the polls in the key primary state of Iowa for several months.
Mr Walker said the race had drifted into personal attacks
Long admired both by top Republicans and the party’s rank-and-file for having forced through conservative reforms in traditionally blue Wisconsin, as Governor he did pitched battle with public sector unions and triumphed in a closely fought recall election in 2012.
His efforts had impressed major GOP donors including billionaire industrialists Charles and David Koch, who had donated to Mr Walker in Wisconsin and indicated support for his presidential bid.
But the Governor proved to be a lacklustre national campaigner, demonstrating little screen charisma and performing poorly in the party’s two televised debates.
Republican candidates in the latest debate
As his campaign failed to catch fire in recent weeks, Mr Walker’s natural place in the field was claimed by his rivals: Mr Trump is now the pre-eminent populist insurgent, while Florida Senator Marco Rubio is filling the role of the party’s youthful, inspirational insider.
Following last week’s debate in California, where he claimed less screen time than any of the other 10 candidates with whom he shared the stage, Mr Walker was reportedly deserted by donors. With his campaign’s fundraising machine floundering, a national CNN poll this week found that Mr Walker’s support among Republican voters had collapsed to less than 0.5 per cent.
Media mogul Stanley Hubbard, who had previously backed Mr Walker’s campaign exclusively, said last week that he would also begin donating to his rivals Mr Rubio, Carly Fiorina and Chris Christie.
“Donors have totally dried up for Walker,” one GOP donor told the New York Times. “The candidate and the campaign just couldn’t inspire confidence.”
As news of his likely withdrawal from the race broke, former Walker staffer Liz Mair tweeted a list of reasons for the Wisconsin Governor’s failure, including “pandering”, “flip-flopping” and “becoming so invested in winning, no matter what it took, that he lost sight of his real identity as a political leader.”
Mr Walker is the second candidate to exit the Republican race, following former Texas Governor Rick Perry. Mr Perry withdrew prior to the second debate, citing his campaign’s dwindling finances. With their departures, a mere 15 candidates remain in the running.
