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 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, 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, betting that a strong victory on Super Tuesday would give him the necessary momentum.
“I’m a believer in using data to inform decisions. After yesterday’s results, the delegate math has become virtually impossible —and a viable path to the nomination no longer exists,” Bloomberg said in his statement.
Bloomberg, who has said his campaign operation will remain intact until November, indicated in his statement he would funnel resources into assisting Biden. “I will work to make him the next President of the United States,” he said.
