Klobuchar to End Bid for 2020 Democratic Nomination

Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) speaks during a campaign rally at the Altria Theatre in Richmond, Va., on Feb. 29, 2020. Zach Gibson/Getty Images

Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) will end her presidential campaign, her campaign said, making her the third candidate to exit the race in as many days.

Klobuchar, 59, was flying to Dallas, where she was planning to appear March 2 with former Vice President Joe Biden, 77, at his rally and announce the end to her bid and her endorsement of Biden, her campaign told news outlets.

Klobuchar struggled to win delegates in the early voting states, ending sixth in Nevada and South Carolina after a third-place finish in New Hampshire and a fifth-place finish in the Iowa caucus.

In this Feb. 24, 2020 photo, file photo, Democratic presidential candidates Joe Biden and Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) greet at a South Carolina Democratic Party dinner in Charleston, S.C. Meg Kinnard/AP Photo

A prosecutor before being elected to the Senate in 2007, Klobuchar was considered a moderate in the Democratic field, repeatedly critical of government expansion plans touted by rivals Sens. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.). Klobuchar and Biden regularly condemned the Medicare for All plans put forward by Warren and Sanders, asserting that such plans would prove too expensive and kick tens of millions of Americans off of their current health care plans.

The end to Klobuchar’s campaign will come just one day after former South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg, 38, announced he was quitting the 2020 race.

Buttigieg didn’t endorse another candidate but called on supporters to vote for whoever wins the Democratic nomination.

“I will do everything in my power to ensure that we have a new Democratic president come January,” he said in South Bend.

A campaign adviser said March 2 that Buttigieg plans to endorse Biden.

Democratic presidential candidate former South Bend, Indiana Mayor Pete Buttigieg attends a campaign event in Raleigh, North Carolina on Feb. 29, 2020. Eric Thayer/Reuters

Buttigieg had views that some considered radical but sought to position himself to the right of Warren and Sanders on issues including health care.

Tom Steyer, a billionaire businessman, also dropped out over the weekend.

Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) speaks during a campaign rally on the Boston Common in Boston, on Feb. 29, 2020. Scott Eisen/Getty Images

Democratic presidential candidate former New York City mayor Mike Bloomberg speaks during a campaign rally at Hangar 9 in San Antonio, Texas, on March 1, 2020. Joe Raedle/Getty Images

With Buttigieg and Klobuchar bowing out, Biden could more easily win additional states on Super Tuesday after defeating rivals in South Carolina on Feb. 29 by a large margin. Biden and Sanders will be joined for the first time on the ballot by Michael Bloomberg, the former New York City mayor, who announced his candidacy in November 2019 and proceeded to skip the first four states on the calendar, instead focusing on March 3 Super Tuesday states and beyond.

Democratic presidential candidate Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (D-Hawaii) answers media questions following a campaign event in Portsmouth, New Hampshire on Feb. 9, 2020. Scott Eisen/Getty Images

In addition to Sanders, Biden, Bloomberg, and Warren, the only remaining Democratic presidential candidate is Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (D-Hawaii), 38. She has won zero delegates so far as has Bloomberg, who bypassed Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada, and South Carolina.

Sanders is in front with 60 delegates, Biden has 54, and Warren has eight. Buttigieg had 26 and Klobuchar had seven.