Pataki out

Pataki exits Republican presidential race

By POLITICO Staff

Former New York Gov. George Pataki dropped out of the presidential race Tuesday.

"While tonight I suspend my campaign for president, I am confident we can elect the right person," he tweeted, adding a statement by video.

"Tonight is the end of my journey for the White House," he said in his video.

Earlier Tuesday, a supporter confirmed Pataki's departure from the race.

“I had a nice 10-minute chat with him late afternoon and he is planning on suspending the campaign partially due to lack of resources to mount a ground game," said former New Hampshire state Sen. David Currier.

The Republican's candidacy never took off, and he's leaving the race with an average of zero percent support in national polls. Pataki, whose strategy was heavily focused on New Hampshire, raised just $153,513.89 in the third quarter, giving him $13,570.55 in cash on hand at the end of September.

He also never managed to make it to the main debate stage.

In a race that has often been dominated by political outsiders, Pataki is the fourth current or former governor to drop out, following Rick Perry, Scott Walker and Bobby Jindal.

After ousting Mario Cuomo in 1994, Pataki served three terms as New York's governor, from 1995 to 2006. He was governor during the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks in 2001 and, along with New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, was the face of the local response to the terrorist attack.

The GOP field, which has slowly winnowed, still has 12 candidates after Pataki's exit.