Pete Buttigieg Ends His 2020 Presidential Campaign

Democratic candidate Pete Buttigieg has dropped out of the race to be the party’s presidential nominee.

On Sunday, (March 1) an aide to the former South Bend, Indiana mayor told CNBC that Buttigieg’s distant fourth place finish in Saturday’s (February 29) South Carolina primary led to his decision to end his campaign. Later the former mayor made it official with a public announcement in South Bend on Sunday evening.

“Imagine how proud we would be to be the generation that saw the day when your race has no bearing on your health, or your wealth, or your relationship with law enforcement in the United States,” said Buttigieg.

“What if we could be the ones to deliver the day when our teachers are honored a little more like soldiers and paid a little more like doctors? What if we were the ones who rallied this nation to see to it that climate would be no barrier to our children’s opportunities in life? The chance to do that is in our hands. That is the hope in our hearts. That is the fire in our bellies. That is the future we believe in, a country that really does empower every American to thrive, and a future where everyone belongs. Thank you for sharing that vision. Thank you for helping us run our campaign. Thank you so much. Let’s move on together. Thank you.”

Buttigieg was unable to capture a bigger percentage of the Black vote in the South Carolina primary and the recent Nevada primary. He only got 3% and 2% of the Black vote in the respective states, CNBC also reported.

“He believes this is the right thing to do right now for our country and the country to heal this divided nation and defeat President Trump,” an aide told CNN.

RELATED: Pete Buttigieg Backlash: South Bend, Indiana’s Black Residents Send Warnings About Their Former Mayor

Earlier on Sunday, the Afghanistan War veteran and openly gay candidate appeared determined to stay in the race. During an appearance on NBC’s “Meet the Press” with Chuck Todd, he said “pushing forward is the best thing we can do for the country and for the party,” when he was asked if it was time to end his campaign.

Todd went on to remind Buttigieg that the Democratic nominee must have a diverse group of supporters.

“The nominee of Democratic Party has to be able to win, has to be able to have a strong coalition of African American voters, Latino voters. This has been a struggle for you both in Nevada and South Carolina,” Todd said according to The Hill.

Buttigieg is the second candidate after the South Carolina primary to suspend his campaign.