Senator Lindsey Graham is ending his presidential campaign, he told supporters on a conference call Monday.
“I was hoping not to have to make this call, but I think the time has come for me to suspend my campaign,” he said.
He made the official announcement in an email to supporters and YouTube video posted Monday morning.
Graham, a well-respected senator from South Carolina, has failed to gain traction in the presidential race and was repeatedly relegated to undercard contests, unable to break through into the main stage.
“We’ve come to a point now where I just don’t see how we grow the campaign without getting on the main stage,” he said. “One of the biggest problems we’ve had was to get our voice on equal footing with others. This second-tier debate process has been difficult for us. I think we’ve done well in the debates, it’s just hard to break through because the buzz doesn’t last very long.”
Graham told CNN on Monday that he doesn’t have any immediate plans to endorse any of the other GOP candidates. “I’m going to take some time with my family. Going to think about what I should do. I have no intention of endorsing anyone right now,” he said.
During his call to supporters, Graham said he was proud of the tone of his presidential campaign. “I never went down the demagoguery trail,” he said. “I didn’t get into this campaign to run other people down, and to bring out the worst in who we are as a party or a country. I think what makes America great is our tolerance for each other and the fact that we respect people who are different. That’s so different than our enemies.”
Watch Graham’s announcement here.