Kasich Suspends His Presidential Campaign
John Kasich announced this evening he was suspending his presidential campaign.
"As I suspend my campaign today, I have renewed faith, deeper faith that the Lord will show me the way forward and fulfill the purpose of my life," the Ohio governor said in the same refurbished barn where former California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger endorsed him on March 6.
Kasich began his speech by thanking his wife, twin 16-year-old daughters, and individual members of his staff by name. He thanked volunteers and praised his colleagues in Ohio.
"Nobody has ever done more with less in the history of politics than what the staff has done," Kasich said.
He at times appeared on the verge of tears as he described how emotional encounters with Americans across the country had changed him.
"They encouraged me," he said, choking up. "The people of our country changed me. They changed me with the stories of their lives."
The move comes less than 24 hours after Republican front-runner Donald Trump won Indiana's GOP primary, defeating Kasich and Ted Cruz, the Texas senator who ended his own presidential bid last night.
The chairman of the Republican National Committee, Reince Priebus, said in a tweet last night that Trump will be the "presumptive" GOP nominee. Kasich only won one state contest -- his home state of Ohio -- and failed to reach the number of delegates to compete with Trump at this summer's Republican national convention.
Kasich announced his bid for the Republican presidential nomination on July 21, 2015.
"I am here to ask you for your prayers, for your support, for your efforts, because I have decided to run for President of the United States," Kasich said at The Ohio State University, in Columbus, Ohio, at the time.
Kasich was invited to every "main stage" Republican primary debate, although with so many other candidates on stage, he failed to have a true break-out moment. As mudslinging broke out among the other GOP candidates, Kasich strove to portray himself as staying above the fray, calling himself the "prince of light and hope."
