Last updated on September 6th, 2023 at 05:11 am
Miami Mayor Francis Suarez has suspended his bid for the presidency in the 2024 race, becoming the first major Republican candidate to withdraw from the contest due to his failure to qualify for the First Republican debate.
Francis Suarez Suspends His Presidential Nomination:
In a statement posted on the X platform, Francis Suarez reaffirmed his commitment to improving the nation for all Americans despite suspending his campaign. He entered the race just over two months ago, positioning himself as a latecomer to a primary race that had largely been led by former President Donald Trump.
Francis Suarez, 45, had expressed a vision for a youthful, positive, and culturally diverse campaign during an interview with Reuters. However, national polls consistently placed him near the bottom of the pack in the primary race.
“Running for President of the United States has been one of the greatest honors of my life,” Francis Suarez conveyed in his announcement. He also expressed his intention to remain engaged with other Republican presidential candidates and contribute to ensuring that the party presents a strong nominee capable of inspiring and unifying the nation, restoring trust in institutions, and securing victory.
Francis Suarez’s inability to secure substantial support in the polls ultimately led to his failure to meet the polling requirement set by the Republican National Committee to participate in the first debate. He had previously emphasized that meeting this benchmark should be a decisive factor for presidential campaigns.
Speaking to reporters at the Iowa State Fair earlier this month, Francis Suarez acknowledged the importance of not diverting time away from productive endeavors when a campaign can’t meet minimum thresholds.
However, his campaign faced challenges beyond polling performance. During a radio interview, Suarez was caught off guard when questioned about alleged human rights abuses in China against the Uyghurs, a Muslim minority in Xinjiang. This raised concerns about his qualifications for the presidency and his grasp of foreign policy issues.
Throughout his campaign, Suarez faced an uphill battle in a race primarily dominated by the influence of former President Trump. Most opinion polls positioned Florida Governor Ron DeSantis as a distant second, with Suarez consistently ranking at the bottom of the candidate list.
Francis Suarez also had contentious relationships with both Trump and DeSantis. Notably, he did not support Trump during the former president’s 2020 reelection bid and was critical of some of Governor DeSantis’ policies related to the COVID-19 pandemic.
In response to Suarez’s withdrawal from the race, former President Trump, on his social media platform Truth Social, took the opportunity to call for the withdrawal of his longstanding critic, Chris Christie, from the Republican presidential race, labeling him as detrimental to the party’s interests
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