The U.S. is getting closer to picking its Democratic Presidential candidate to run against Donald Trump in the 2020 elections.
Billionaire hedge-fund businessman Tom Steyer has announced he is ending his bid in the race for the coveted position after a weak finishing in the South Carolina primary on Saturday.
The 62-year-old was only able to take hold of third place with just 12 percent of the votes.
“We live in a country that is deeply unjust economically where rich people have been profiting at the expense of everybody else,” said Steyer on Saturday. “And I didn’t get in this race and start talking about things to get votes. I was in this race to talk about things that I cared the most about.”
Steyer had spent millions of dollars on his campaign run, with $21 million going towards South Carolina. He made an effort to increase support from black voters by hiring black-owned businesses for his campaign stops and spending ad dollars with black-owned media companies. However, his efforts may have come a little too late.
Although there was an increase at the polls in Steyer’s favor, his visibility in the race came only eight months ago on July 9, 2019.
Many voters were unfamiliar with Steyer. As a result, there were issues with voter trust as some began to speculate that he was buying his way into candidacy.
It was even more awkward to see him on stage with New Orleans rap artist Juvenile dancing to “Back That Azz Up”. While he focused on relating to people on a cultural level and talking about issues of social justice and climate change, he failed to acquire pledged delegates in New Hampshire and Iowa.
Steyer said he will continue to support the Democratic Party. The Democrats started with a total of 25 candidates running the race and is now down to seven.
Sen. Bernie Sanders remains the top choice. The other remaining candidates include Joe Biden, Elizabeth Warren, Michael Bloomberg, Amy Klobuchar, Pete Buttigieg and Tulsi Gabbard.
