46-year-old Ohio Congressman Tim Ryan has ended his campaign for the Democratic nomination, announcing his decision on Twitter.
I’m announcing today that I am withdrawing from the Presidential campaign.
— Tim Ryan (@TimRyan) 24 октября 2019 г.
I got into this race in April to really give voice to the forgotten people of our country. I look forward to continuing that fight.
Thank you, to everyone who supported this campaign. pic.twitter.com/BT4z3fQ205
In a video address, Ryan explained that he would be returning to his home state to run for reelection to Congress.
Ryan said that he got into the race in April "to really give voice to the forgotten people of our country: the workers who have been left behind, businesses who've been left behind, people who need healthcare or aren't getting a quality education, or are saddled by tremendous debt."
Despite his decision to drop out, Ryan said he was "proud" of the campaign he's run, saying he did give voice to forgotten communities and forgotten Americans.
Throughout the race, Ryan polled within the margin of error, with a RealClearPolitics poll average giving him 0.7 percent of voters, on par with Senator Michael Bennet and former Obama administration housing secretary Julian Castro.
Becoming a congressman in 2003, Ryan unsuccessfully challenged then-House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi for her post in 2016. He qualified for the first two debates, but did not qualify for the ones held in September and October. Possibly his best-remembered debate moment was when he clashed with Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders' medicare-for-all proposal in July, prompting Sanders to answer with the now famous line "I wrote the damn bill," which has since been emblazened on stickers, t-shirts and coffee mugs by the Sanders campaign.
With Ryan's departure, the collection of candidates vying for the 2020 nomination has shrunk to 18, down from 27 in early 2019. Voting for the Democratic nomination will begin in February.
