Michael Bloomberg Drops Out of 2020 Race — And Backs Joe Biden – By Alana Abramson (TIME) / March 4 2020
Michael Bloomberg, the former New York City Mayor who belatedly upended the 2020 Democratic primary by infusing his campaign with half a billion dollars of his personal fortune, announced Wednesday morning that he was exiting the race and throwing his support behind former Vice President Joe Biden.
“Three months ago, I entered the race for President to defeat Donald Trump,” Bloomberg said in a statement. “Today, I am leaving the race for the same reason: to defeat Donald Trump — because it is clear to me that staying in would make achieving that goal more difficult.”
Bloomberg’s announcement and endorsement of the former Vice President came less than 12 hours after Biden’s surprisingly strong performance in the 15 Super Tuesday contests — the races Bloomberg had invested in to propel him to the nomination. While Biden won nine states, netting surprise victories in Massachusetts, Texas and Minnesota and surpassing Sanders in the delegate contest, Bloomberg won just one contest in American Samoa, and won 44 delegates.
It was a tough blow for the media mogul, who, after entering the race in November, had skipped the first four contests in a bet that a strong Super Tuesday victory would give him the necessary momentum to advance in the race.
Addressing his staff and supporters in midtown Manhattan Wednesday afternoon, Bloomberg became emotional as he emphasized the importance of beating Trump in November. “I will not be our party’s nominee. But I won’t walk away from the most important political fight and I hope you won’t walk away either,” he told the crowd.
Continue to article: https://time.com/5795561/bloomberg-suspends-campaign/
