LAS VEGAS (AP)— Mike Pence, with an impressive resume as a congressman, governor, and former vice president, seemed like a strong candidate for the White House. But in today’s unprecedented times, Pence’s decision to end his campaign over two months before the first Republican primary highlights the overwhelming influence of Donald Trump and his baseless claims about the 2020 election.
Pence made his surprising announcement at a summit in Las Vegas, where he was speaking alongside other GOP presidential hopefuls sponsored by the Republican Jewish Coalition. However, Pence’s campaign effectively concluded years ago, in the days leading up to January 6, 2021. It was during this time that Trump, desperate to retain power, falsely believed that Pence, as Senate president, could reject the election results—a power Pence did not possess.
After four years of staunchly defending Trump, Pence was abruptly labeled a traitor and became the target of rioters who stormed the Capitol. Some even chanted “Hang Mike Pence!” Supporters of Trump removed Pence’s name from their “Trump-Pence” yard signs or purposefully buried them in the ground. While this issue became less prominent as the campaign progressed, Pence faced heckling and booing at times.
Art Pope, a GOP donor from North Carolina and supporter of Pence’s campaign, stated, “From the very beginning, I think his supporters knew that the challenge was going to be some of the hardcore Trump supporters were never going to forgive him for upholding the Constitution on Jan 6. On the other hand, there were a group of Americans who were never going to forgive him for being in the Trump administration to begin with. He just could not overcome that.”
Pence attempted to navigate a delicate balance throughout his campaign. He ran on the accomplishments of the Trump-Pence administration while criticizing his former boss. Pence accused Trump of neglecting conservative principles on issues like abortion and prioritizing his own interests over the Constitution. During his campaign launch, Pence directly addressed the events of January 6, defending his actions and remarking that Trump had disqualified himself during that period.
The campaign slogan “KeptHisOath!”—the Wi-Fi password for the media at the event—reinforced Pence’s message. His supportive super PAC even released an ad contrasting Pence’s and Trump’s actions during the insurrection. The goal was to demonstrate Pence’s commitment to upholding the Constitution and portray it as a strength.
However, this approach failed to gain traction among conservative primary voters. Polls and focus groups revealed that a majority of Republicans still believed Biden’s presidency was illegitimate, while many held the view that Trump had done nothing wrong in the lead-up to January 6.
Supporters and insiders close to Pence acknowledged that his campaign had effectively ended following the second debate in September. Though there were expectations of a surge in momentum after the first debate, in which Pence delivered a remarkably forceful performance, there was no noticeable increase in poll numbers or fundraising. By the second debate, Pence was relegated to the outskirts of the stage.
A campaign finance report confirmed the dire state of Pence’s campaign. He had accumulated over $600,000 in debt and was depleting nearly as much money as he was raising, despite a robust fundraising schedule. Attaining the necessary funds to make it to the January caucuses in Iowa would have left Pence in substantial debt for years, which was not a viable option considering his lack of personal wealth.
Although aides assured that Pence would qualify for the third debate if he put in the effort, his calendar remained suspiciously empty. This past week, Pence began informing top supporters of his decision to end the campaign.
“He never got much traction,” said Larry Post, a retired money manager and Republican donor in Las Vegas. “He’s kind of stiff, so I don’t think he had a lot of charisma.” However, Post also recognized that Pence’s clash with Trump over the events of January 6 may have influenced his inability to gain momentum as a candidate.
While Pence’s departure is unlikely to significantly boost any of his rivals, former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, the most vocal Trump critic in the race, sees it as a sign that the field is narrowing—something anti-Trump Republicans have long called for to have a chance at directly challenging Trump.
“In the end, it just means this race is narrowing as everyone said that it would,” Christie said in an interview.
Pence reached out to Art Pope earlier this week to inform him of his decision to end the campaign, and Pope believes it was the right choice.
“If there is not a path to victory then I think it was a prudent thing to withdraw from the race earlier rather than later and let the field consolidate,” Pope stated, while expressing his belief that Trump can be defeated.
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